Love Potion Number 9
by LouBlue
Summary: Sequel to 'Secret Women's Business'. When keeping Felicity by his side becomes a matter of life or death for Oliver, just how far will he go to keep her? (Spoiler alert - far). If you've read the first story you know you're in way too deep to quit now. If you haven't read it yet, what are you waiting for? Felicity & Oliver have mad chemistry, come watch me exploit it shamelessly!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N****: Hola, peepolas! How is every little thing? **

**Now, for those of you meeting me for the first time, hey there, lovely to see you here, I'm thrilled you chose to spend some precious seconds of your life checking out this fic… however, to get the full appreciation of this fic, I'm really going to have to highly recommend that you check out the first part of this story which is called 'Secret Women's Business' before attempting to read this story. Now, I'm not saying that not reading SWB's will render this fic unreadable and a total waste of your time… but I am saying that partaking in this fic without reading the first one is a bit like having pancakes by themselves. Doable… but what's the point really? Plus, there are quite a few inside little references which will only make sense if you read my first story, so yeah, I think it's best for everyone involved if you toddle off and check out 'Secret Women's Business' first, okay? Don't worry, we'll wait for you to get back before going any further, take your time, no rush. **

… **yeah, no, we're totally not going to wait for them to get back. Let's do this thing already! **

**Now, an update in my life. First, I've discovered a new special talent. You know how Spock does that V thing with his hand and says 'Live Long and Prosper'? Well, I can do that with both hands and wait for it, my left foot. Only my left foot mind you, I think my right foot is more of a Star Wars fan. I'm keen to add this new skill to my CV. I'm not really sure when it'll come in handy, but like most super powers, I feel like when the time is right, I'll just know. Pretty much like when Clarke finally flew in the last episode of Smallville… after 10 frickin' years. Way to be ahead of the curve there, Kalel. Hopefully my special talent won't take ten years to come in handy. Stay tuned for more exciting updates on this matter. **

**Secondly, and probably more relevant to why you're all here in the first place, updates about my Arrow fandom. I have now watched the entire first season of Arrow. Yes, I am light years ahead with my Arrow mythology then I was at the beginning of my first fic… which was zero, so really, I'd set that particular bar pretty damn low. I've have given up the fight to try and stay strong against the charisma of the Olicity/Stemily juggernaut of awesomeness and thrown myself head first into shipping the living hell out of both of them. Sorry, Stephen and Emily, shipping on you by me this hard may leave some chaffing… you may want to put some cream on that… and save some for David Ramsey because that man is too delicious for words. **

**I'm pumped for S3 with Stephen Amell telling us there is only one woman for Oliver in S3 and that is Felicity. It's pretty obvious that he is a super Olicity fan himself and in that special fanwanking way that only fangirls and boys can really understand, I've already pretty much assumed he had a big hand in making Ollie all about Felicity this coming season. It doesn't hurt that the writers and EP's seem like pretty big fanboys of Olicity too. I know there are no guarantees with this kind of thing but if the writing is good, I'll follow… and if the writing dissatisfies, I'll fan fic. **

**Now, about this actual story. Whilst there will be elements of humor in this one, it isn't intended to be quite as light hearted as the last story. So yes, there will be angst… and a rating level which may get a little more adult as we go along. I'm just going to listen to the muse on that one because for me, one of the greatest appeals of the Olicity relationship is that it's not heavily based in lust. I mean, they have their moments but the way Felicity feels about Oliver is so much more pure than simple sexual attraction and the same goes for him, I think. We'll have clarification in episode one of Season 3 but in the meantime, I'm just going to run this as to where I'm up to in watching the show. And, on that note, I'm not really following a particular time line from the show in this story. I usually do but this time I'm just borrowing the characters and plonking them into my own s/l. Basically I have Moira being dead but no Malcom Merlyn/Thea reveals or anything like that. And, I'm having Quentin Lance still hunting the Hood and hating on Oliver… and no Laurel in this story… at this point.**

**What else to say? Lots probably, but how about I just let you read the first chapter and see what you make of it. It doesn't really give you any kind of clue as to where this story is going to go… or does it? (It doesn't) But hopefully you'll have fun with it anyways. **

**Thanks again for checking out this new story of mine. While you read I have to try and get my muse out of the crawlspace in my walls. Last time she got back there she chewed through all the wiring and it cost me an arm and a leg to get an electrician out to fix it all. Damn muse… talk about being raised by wolves with a heavy crack addiction. Definite time out for her coming up. Wish me luck…**

**LOVE POTION #9**

"I must get my soul back from you; I am killing my flesh without it."  
~Sylvia Plath~

_The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath_

**CHAPTER ONE**

Oliver pulled at the neck of the close-fitting exoskeleton suit which he was wearing under his regular workout clothes. He looked around at the deserted old docks with its lines of abandoned warehouses as Diggle walked up to him. "I didn't even know this place existed," he commented to the other man.

"I'm not surprised. These docks haven't been used since just after World War II," replied Diggle. "Plus, they're a bit out of town, so they've got the privacy factor we were going for with testing this suit."

"It was a good find," said Oliver approvingly. He glanced over at the van they'd all driven to the spot in.

"Felicity is just sorting out the cameras," said Diggle to his unspoken question. "You nervous about doing more testing on the suit?"

"No."

"Because Felicity said she even though she hasn't completely figured out the overheating issue, we're not going to be testing it against weapons tonight."

"I know," said Oliver a little distractedly, still watching the van.

"Oliver, I'm going to ask you an honest question and I'd kind of appreciate an honest answer."

Oliver dragged his attention away from the van and frowned at Diggle. "Okay."

"Is there something going on with you and Felicity?"

Oliver's frown deepened. "No, why do you ask?"

"You're doing that question thing after a denial again," pointed out Diggle. "And I just want to remind you what happened last time you kept me out of the loop when you had a bee in your bonnet about Felicity."

"I don't have a bee in my bonnet about anything," said Oliver hotly. "Who even talks like that nowadays?"

"Don't change the subject," said Diggle firmly. "Just answer my question."

"I did," said Oliver sharply. "Nothing is going on with Felicity and me… not really."

Diggle pulled a face. "And there we have it. What does not really mean?"

Oliver hesitated. It had been just over two weeks since the night of the first testing of the suit and he and Felicity had shared that moment when for a brief few seconds, Oliver had contemplated throwing all caution to the wind. Diggle had interrupted them just in time and since then, neither one of them had spoken about it. Oliver would catch Felicity looking at him sometimes and he knew she was waiting for him to reference that almost kiss between them but Oliver just wasn't sure what he wanted to say to her about it.

"Oliver?"

"I almost kissed Felicity," confessed Oliver.

"Almost?"

"You kind of interrupted us."

Diggle blinked. "When?"

"After the first test of the suit, when she was patching me up."

Diggle frowned. "But that was weeks ago."

"I know."

"And what has happened since then?"

"Nothing."

"But you must have talked about it?"

Oliver pulled a face. "Not exactly."

"And by not exactly you mean…?"

"Not at all."

Diggle folded his arms in front of himself. "So, you're telling me you went to kiss Felicity but didn't and then just haven't talked to her about it?"

Oliver moved his shoulders restlessly. "I just haven't gotten around to it. It's been a busy couple of weeks," he said defensively. "And then she was in Gotham City for those few days, consulting with Lucius about the suit."

"You two spend more time together than anyone else," pointed out Diggle flatly. "Hell, you spend more time together in any given day then most married couples. How could you have not found the time to not leave Felicity hanging like that, even if she was out of town for a few days?"

Oliver scowled. "I didn't leave her hanging."

Diggle pressed his lips together and gave him a disapproving look. "I'm going to assume you're not a total idiot and you're aware that Felicity has a soft spot for you."

Oliver did know that. It was kind of obvious sometimes. And in his weaker moments, Oliver had to admit he liked knowing that… a lot.

"And I'd hate to think you'd use her feelings for you as some kind of prop when there was no one else around."

Oliver was taken aback. "What the hell does that mean?"

"It means don't break that little girl's heart," said Diggle sternly.

"I would never intentionally hurt Felicity," said Oliver hotly.

"And that's my problem with this, you don't seem to know what your intentions are when it comes to Felicity and I won't have you jerking her around just because a whim takes you and you feel the need to be kissing a pretty girl at random moments."

"It's not like that with Felicity and me," said Oliver tightly. They weren't just about physical attraction and that was kind of the problem.

"Listen to me, Oliver, and know I'm saying this with a lot of love in my heart, but you're a red hot mess when it comes to your love life. You are to romance what dysentery is to a dinner party."

Oliver glared at him. "I'm so glad you prefaced that with the love in the heart bit. It really softened the blow when you compared me to diarrhea."

Diggle arched an eyebrow at him. "Are you seriously going to suggest your dating history is anything other than a nuclear holocaust?"

Oliver opened his mouth to do just that but was then forced to close it again.

"Exactly," said Diggle knowingly. "And if you want my opinion—"

"Pretty sure I don't based on how this conversation has gone so far," said Oliver in vague annoyance.

"I think you and Felicity would be amazing together."

Oliver looked at him in surprise. "You do?"

"I do. You two fit in a way that shouldn't really work but it just does only there is one big sticking point for me."

Diggle had all of Oliver's attention now. "And that is?"

"You need to be all in, Oliver," said Diggle, holding his gaze unblinkingly. "Felicity deserves nothing less than a man who knows his own mind and what he wants and what he is willing to do to have it. If you keep on going back and forth on what you feel like you can offer Felicity then you're going to break this, break us." He indicated the three of them. "If you mess around with Felicity's heart, whether it's intentional or not, there is a very real possibility she'll feel like she can't be around you anymore and you know what that means, right?"

"I don't want to break Felicity's heart," said Oliver emphatically. "That's the last thing I want, Digg."

"Yeah, but it could happen."

"And you're worried about Felicity, I get it," said Oliver unhappily.

"I am," said Diggle quickly, "but you're the one I'm ultimately worried about the most because the truth of the matter is that you need her more than she needs you. I knew you before Felicity and I've known you after and the truth is, you're a better man with Felicity in your life than without." He gave Oliver a somewhat sympathetic look. "Just be sure, that's all I'm saying. Don't make the same mistakes you've made with all the other women in your life so far. Felicity doesn't deserve a half-assed attempt at love. She deserves the whole package and for what it's worth, I think you do too but I'm not sure you believe that about yourself and until you do, I feel like you're just going to keep on self-sabotaging every chance you get at happiness and I don't want Felicity caught up in your whirlpool of self-loathing."

Oliver just stared at him. "You have a lot of opinions on the subject of me and Felicity."

"You two are very important to me," said Diggle unapologetically. "I tend to have a lot of opinions about people I care about."

"I want to do the right thing, Diggle, by Felicity, by all of us," said Oliver unevenly. "And I just feel like I'm not the guy who—"

"Who what?" asked Diggle intently.

"Who gets to have it all," said Oliver hopelessly. "I don't get to make a difference in this world, lead this kind of life and still get to have the beautiful, funny, sweet and innocent girl to come home to." His expression clouded over. "I've done too many things, Digg. Too many unforgivable, irreversible things in my life. That guy doesn't get to stand in the light, he has to stay in the shadows."

"Is that really how you see yourself?" asked Diggle in concern. "Because you've done a lot of good things too, saved a lot of lives, people who'll never even know what they owe you." When Oliver didn't immediately respond, Diggle put a hand on his shoulder. "Shadows only happen when there is light in the darkness, Oliver, you might want to remember that."

Oliver knew what Diggle was saying but he also knew that too much darkness could envelope the light and extinguish it forever. He looked over to where Felicity was finally climbing out of the van, several cameras in hand, along with a metal case. He couldn't risk drowning her light with all of his darkness. Doing something like that would only add to his long list of sins and Oliver couldn't do that to Felicity. She didn't deserve that, she didn't deserve him. Fortunately he was spared continuing the conversation as the two of them hurried up to help her, relieving Felicity of the cameras and case.

"Thanks," she said gratefully. "I think I've got everything we need."

"That's a lot of cameras," remarked Diggle.

"I want to set them up and get views from different angles of the suit in action," said Felicity, pushing her glasses up her nose. She nodded at the suitcase Oliver was now holding. "And I want to make sure I'm monitoring you closely, Oliver. I need to see how the modifications track with your body." Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I really don't want a repeat of what happened last time." She looked between the two of them. "Are you sure you're both up for this?"

Diggle half-smiled. "As long as tonight's activities don't involve me having to have my retina's scarred by the sight of Oliver's bobbing white ass at some point, I'm good to go."

"That's great," said Oliver straight-faced. "Because you were really helpful last time." He paused and pursed his lips. "Wait, no, that's not the right word. What's the word I'm looking for?" Oliver clicked his fingers. "Annoying, really _annoying_ last time. I always get those two words confused."

Diggle chuckled. "Then my work here is done." He looked at Felicity. "I'll start setting up the cameras. You just want them in a perimeter around this area?" Diggle motioned his hand to indicate the area behind them which consisted of a warehouse with scaffolding covering part of one wall, a water tower and a couple of docks.

Felicity nodded. "That would be great, Digg, thanks." Diggle walked off to start setting up the cameras and Felicity pointed at the case Oliver was holding. "You can put that down on the ground and I'll start getting you set up."

Oliver placed the metal case on the ground and watched as Felicity bent down and opened it up. Diggle was right, they needed to talk about what had almost happened between them. "Felicity."

"Mm?" she responded distractedly, fossicking through the case.

Oliver tried to work out a way to take a run up at this thing. "You… ah… you never really told me how your trip to Gotham City went."

"That's because as soon as I stepped off the plane we had that string of bank robberies to deal with."

"I know but I was just wondering how it went?"

Felicity stood up and grinned at him. "It was great," she said excitedly. "And Bruce said I could come back any time."

"Bruce?"

"Bruce Wayne," said Felicity easily.

Oliver tilted his head. "I didn't realize you knew Bruce Wayne." He'd met the man a few times since taking on the running of Queen Consolidated but couldn't remember Bruce and Felicity crossing paths before.

"I didn't but he was in the R&amp;D department when I went to meet Lucius and he introduced us." Felicity pursed her lips. "He wasn't really what I expected."

"What did you expect?"

"I don't know. Kind of a ditzy playboy but he was really kind of… sweet, I guess."

"Sweet?" said Oliver cynically. "That isn't really isn't the guy's reputation."

"I know, like I said, he wasn't how I thought he'd be and he was really nice to me."

"I bet," said Oliver flatly. Bruce Wayne's reputation with the ladies rivaled his own, only Oliver had left that life behind him. If even half the tabloid stories about Bruce were true, then Oliver knew exactly why the other man was being so sweet to Felicity.

"He showed me around the R&amp;D department and it's huge," said Felicity with obvious admiration.

"Bigger than Queen Consolidated's?"

"Oh yeah," said Felicity candidly. "Bruce's is way bigger than yours, Oliver." She stopped abruptly and blinked a couple of times. "Not that size matters," she continued on hastily.

Oliver pursed his lips. "I don't think that there has ever been a man in the history of time which has ever really believed a woman when they've told them that," he said dryly.

"It's just that Wayne Enterprises has been focusing on that kind of stuff for longer," backtracked Felicity. "Of course it's going to be bigger and more developed and more—"

"I get it, Felicity, Bruce's is more." Oliver didn't know why he was annoyed at that thought but he just was.

"Anyways," said Felicity uncomfortably, "it was just really helpful to have access to those kinds of resources. Lucius and I made a lot of progress with the suit."

Oliver looked at her intently. "Does Wayne know about the suit?"

"No, of course not. Lucius just told Bruce that he'd offered me a job and was showing me around."

"Which is the truth." Oliver was watching Felicity's expression closely. "Now you've seen the size of the department, were you tempted to accept?"

"No," said Felicity quickly. A little too quickly. "Okay, it was hard not to get a little excited about the possibilities," she conceded, "but what I'm doing here, with our team, there is nothing that could trump that, ever."

Oliver was slightly mollified to hear that. For a moment Felicity had made him nervous. Diggle was right. He couldn't lose her and certainly not to the likes of Wayne Enterprises. They could find their own brilliant, funny, go to girl. They sure as hell weren't having his.

"Anyways, like I said, Bruce was really sweet. When I was leaving he gave me a box of different kinds of green tea, said I might find one that I could stomach better amongst them all."

Oliver frowned a little. "How did he know about your green tea aversion?"

Felicity looked a little embarrassed. "I was drinking some just as Lucius went to introduce us and I started choking and then I kind of spat it out all over his suit." She made a pained expression. "I think he was wearing Armani."

Oliver's lips twitched. "You spat green tea on Bruce Wayne?" He wished he could have seen that.

Felicity screwed up her face. "Yes, it was horrible. I was so embarrassed."

"You're not embarrassed when you do it to me," said Oliver wryly.

"That's because it's you," said Felicity in exasperation.

"I'm just going to go ahead and take that as a compliment," said Oliver in vague amusement. "I'm sure that is what you were going for."

"We've got a history which can absorb a little bit of involuntary gag reflex," said Felicity a little defensively. "I was just meeting Bruce for the first time and that wasn't the first impression I was hoping to make."

"If he's handing out boxes of tea to you, I don't think you have to worry about the kind of impression you made," said Oliver flatly. He was a bit annoyed with himself that it hadn't occurred to him to gift Felicity with other types of green tea. Instead it had to be Bruce freaking Wayne.

"What wrong with him giving me a variety of green teas?" asked Felicity in consternation, obviously having picked up on the disapproval even Oliver could hear in his own voice.

"Because it wasn't a box of teas."

"What was it then?"

"It was breadcrumbs."

Felicity looked at him blankly. "Breadcrumbs?"

"When you're trapping small, furry animals, you bait the trap with innocuous little treats that the unsuspecting animal will like and you use them to lure your prey into the bigger trap."

Felicity held up a hand. "Whoa, did you just compare me to a small, furry animal?"

"I'm just saying Bruce Wayne is a predator and predators see the world in terms of always scouting for their next piece of prey," said Oliver unapologetically. "Trust me, I know."

"And you know this because?" she challenged him.

"On the island I hunted to survive and before the island…" Oliver wrinkled his nose. "Well, you know who I was before the island when it came to women. It's the same principle."

"Can you hear yourself?" asked Felicity in disbelief. "Do you actually think a man like Bruce Wayne would look twice at me? He dates supermodels and famous actresses, not little no-name IT wenches."

"It's the thrill of the chase," argued Oliver. "It doesn't matter who you are or even what you look like, it's the hunt which interests a man like Bruce Wayne."

Felicity's expression became irritated. "I'm going to go ahead and take that as an insult," she twisted his words back to him. "Seeing as I'm pretty sure that was what you were going for."

Oliver scowled. "That wasn't an insult, Felicity. I'm just trying to tell you to be careful around men like that."

"Bruce was nothing but a gentleman with me," she protested.

"Aha," said Oliver skeptically, "and when this gentleman offered the invitation to come back any time, did he happen to promise to put you up in one of his five star hotels?"

Felicity hesitated briefly. "Well, yes, but he was only being polite."

"And did he also happen to offer to show you the sights of Gotham City when you did?"

"Oh, well, he's just promoting his hometown," said Felicity defensively as Oliver obviously guessed correctly. "There is nothing wrong with that."

"I really don't think Bruce Wayne is on Gotham City's board of tourism," said Oliver acerbically. "The only thing he was looking at promoting to you was himself. It was an obvious by the numbers play."

"You're really cynical, do you know that?" said Felicity flatly.

"I'm just not as naïve as some," he said, giving her a pointed look.

"I don't even know why we're having this stupid conversation," said Felicity in exasperation. "I went to Gotham to work on the suit… and that's what I did. Just because I accidentally spat on a billionaire while I was there isn't important. I also stole all of the soaps and shampoos from my hotel room and that's not relevant either."

"That's not stealing," he corrected her. "You've paid for the room, they're there for you to use."

Felicity looked a little torn. "I also may have swiped a handful of them from the maid's trolley when she was stocking up the room across from me," she blurted out. Felicity's face screwed up. "Don't judge me. I can't help it. All those little bottles are so cute. I have to have them."

Oliver couldn't help the smile which came to his face. "So, you're a kleptomaniac, good to know."

"Only for little soaps and baby bottles of body care products," said Felicity defensively.

Oliver shook his head, finding the revelation of this latest quirk of Felicity's to be very endearing.

"Anyway," said Felicity, obviously looking to change the subject, "all of this talk isn't getting you ready for the trials tonight." She crouched back down by the metal case and started to pull out various leads and bits and pieces.

Meanwhile, Oliver realized he'd gotten completely sidetracked with what he'd wanted to talk about to Felicity in the first place. He glanced over his shoulder to see Diggle was still off in the distance, setting up the cameras. Oliver then directed his attention back on Felicity who was straightening up with a handful of monitoring equipment. "Felicity."

"Yes?" She handed him the same self-adhesive pads she'd used on him before to monitor his body temperature. "These go on your chest."

Oliver pulled down his t-shirt and the exoskeleton suit and applied the patches to his chest. "You know when we last tested the suit—"

Felicity looked up at him sharply. "I know what you're going to say," she said quickly.

"You do?" asked Oliver skeptically.

"I promise you, nothing like that is going to happen again."

Oliver frowned. _It wasn't?_ Despite the fact Oliver had been about to brush off their little moment, for Felicity's own good, to hear her actually dismiss that almost kiss actually stung far more than he'd expected. "What if I want it to happen again?" The words were out of his mouth before Oliver could stop them. _What the hell was wrong with him?_ Diggle was right, he couldn't keep his intentions straight about Felicity for more than five minutes at a time.

Felicity was looking at him like he'd lost his mind. "Why on earth would you want the suit to burn you again?"

Oliver blinked. "Oh, right, the suit." He cleared his throat. "Actually, I didn't mean that. I meant what happened after my unplanned manscaping session."

Felicity's eyes widened a little. "Oh… okay." She stared at him, obviously expecting him to say something.

Oliver shifted his weight a little on his feet. "I… ah… well, you know… sometimes…" He grimaced. "What I'm trying to say is that sometimes when… you know… there are these moments where… in hindsight…"

"I think I liked your 'can't be with someone I could really care about with the life I lead' speech better," said Felicity, interrupting his rambling attempts to get out what he knew he should say.

"Felicity," said Oliver unhappily.

She fixed a bright smile to her face. "It's fine, Oliver, really. It was just one of those stupid things. Your brain was cooked from the suit and it impaired your judgment and impulse control." Felicity indicated towards his arm. "Give me your hand."

Oliver distractedly complied, trying to read her expression. "Felicity—"

She strapped a heart monitor watch to his wrist, continuing on determinedly. "Really, Oliver, there is nothing to talk about."

"So, we're good?" asked Oliver hesitantly. That little talk hadn't gone exactly as he'd planned but then he hadn't really been sure what kind of reaction he was going to get from Felicity in the first place.

That bright smile was back on her face. "Of course we are," said Felicity simply. "Nothing happened. There is nothing not to be okay about." She pulled a face. "Sorry about the double negative. We're friends and that's all we'll ever be."

Felicity gallantly held his gaze in an attempt to show that she really was fine with that as Oliver stared back at her.

"And that's not nothing. That's a lot," he replied unevenly.

"I know. It's enough, more than enough."

It was like they were both trying to convince each other and themselves that they were both content to draw a line under their relationship as it stood. The thing was though, Oliver found himself suddenly unable to stop staring at her and Felicity seemed to be having the same problem. They'd both just agreed that friends was enough for them, so why couldn't he bring himself to take his eyes off her? Felicity bit her bottom lip as they stood there, staring at each other and Oliver's eyes were immediately drawn to their softness as she gnawed away at the unprotected flesh. Before he could stop himself, Oliver cupped her face, brushing his thumb over her lips. "Don't," he said softly, "you'll hurt yourself." Felicity gave him a surprised look, immediately stopping the assault on her own flesh.

_You'll hurt yourself. _

A sensible warning for both of them regarding this moment and yet Oliver couldn't make himself drop his hand from her face. His thumb rubbed its way back and forth over Felicity's bottom lip, mesmerizing them both. Oliver felt his breathing become constricted, his hand tightening its hold on the Felicity's face. Suddenly there was a persistently noisy little series of beeps and it startled them both. Oliver instantly withdrew his hand from Felicity's face, not knowing what it was.

"It-it's your heart monitor," said Felicity unsteadily, looking decidedly flushed.

Oliver looked down at the monitor on his wrist.

"It beeps when your heart rate gets over a hundred," explained Felicity a little breathlessly, gaze skittering away from his.

"Right," said Oliver a little dazedly, looking at the read out on the monitor. 115. Significantly higher than his usual resting pulse of around 50. He grimaced, not really appreciating the monitor announcing his lack of control around Felicity so stridently. Oliver willed his heart to slow down, forcing himself to calm down. He took a step back away from Felicity, finding that helped. The beeping stopped.

Felicity forced a strained smile to her lips. "At least we know it works," she said, attempting to gloss over their latest almost moment. "I'll check the body temp monitors. I'll just go and get my lap top."

Oliver watched Felicity hurry off just as Diggle came up and stood beside him.

"The cameras are all set," he announced. "You good?"

"Awesome," said Oliver in annoyance but that ire was directed at himself, no one else.

Diggle arched an eyebrow at him. "You two talk, clear the air the air about your little moment?"

"Yes."

"That's good." Diggle was staring at him. "Isn't it?"

Oliver was still watching the van. "Yes."

"Then why has Mr. Throbby come out to play?"

_That damn vein._ Oliver's jaw hardened as he put a hand up to that telltale vein in his temple. There was no point in being coy. "We had another moment," ground out Oliver, angry at himself for his weakness. Oliver looked at Diggle warningly. "Don't say it."

"Tough, because I'm going to say it," said Diggle sharply. "And again, know that it comes from a place of love." He reached out a hand and smacked Oliver sharply around the ear, with a bit more force than was strictly required.

"Ow!" protested Oliver, putting a hand to his still ringing ear and glaring at the other man. "Sometimes I wished you loved me a little less."

"Hey, I didn't want to have to do that but you left me little choice," said an unrepentant Diggle. "Get your shit together."

"I'm trying," complained Oliver, still rubbing his ear.

"Try harder," Diggle advised him. "Don't make me choose sides on this thing because I'm not saying I'm going to choose Felicity's… but I'm going to choose Felicity's."

"Choose my what?" asked Felicity, walking up to them, lap top under her arm.

"I like your coffee better than Oliver's," said Diggle smoothly.

"That's because I actually change the filter on the machine more often than once every two years," said Felicity dryly.

"And it makes all the difference."

Oliver dropped his hand away from his ear, eager to get this show on the road. Clearly he needed to be occupying himself with something at all times to avoid getting himself into any more trouble. "What do you want me to do?"

Felicity smiled at him. "I thought we'd start with some easy stuff. I'll just get you to run in the suit and we'll measure your speed. The suit should double your speed, maybe even more."

"You want me to run?" repeated Oliver. That sounded like a really good idea to him – running and not stopping.

Definitely a plan he could get behind right then.

**A/N****: BTW, just a heads up for those of you who are chronologically challenged, the title, Love Potion Number 9 comes from a very groovy song by The Clovers in 1959. Check it out if you don't know. There is also a movie of the same name which is decidedly less groovy but does star a very young Sandra Bullock, so there is a kind of retro interest there. **

**I hope this first chapter has enticed you to want to check out more. I will spoil this… Oliver is going to have a kind of shitty time of things, Diggle is going to be awesome and Felicity, well, we're going to learn heaps about Felicity during this story as I fill in many blanks for her that the writers have so far left wide open. Let me give you a hint of the goodness to come re: Felicity… The Giant Pistachio. There, I can't be more obvious than that in giving away what is coming up for her and Oliver, now can I? Yup, that's what I thought. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N****: Thank you to everyone who has been kind enough to comment on the story so far. It's always pretty daunting posting a new fic, so it's always lovely to get some encouragement. :D **

**I'm rushing off to work now, so I won't dilly dally. This chapter has a fair amount of action in it, which isn't my most fave thing to write (I get bored writing it), so hopefully it'll make sense to you. We're going to take a few chapters to warm up to where I'm ultimately going with this story but if you like the thought of a jealous, out of control and vulnerable Oliver, then this fic should tick a few boxes for you. ;) **

**Hope you enjoy…**

**CHAPTER TWO**

Oliver sprinted past Diggle and Felicity, having just run from one end of the vacant area to the other. He slowed down and circled back around to where Felicity was looking at the read out on a speed gun. "How did I do?"

Felicity looked up at him and grinned. "41 mph, not too shabby."

Without the suit Oliver was a naturally fast runner but there was no doubting the suit took it to the next level. He wasn't even out of breath.

"I mean, you're no Barry Allen but it's still pretty damn impressive," said Felicity blithely.

"I'm no Bruce Wayne, I'm no Barry Allen," noted Oliver wryly. "If I was a lesser man I might be getting a complex around now."

"Hey Felicity, looks like you're going to have to start working on making an exoskeleton to protect that delicate ego of his next," said Diggle straight-faced. "Apparently Oliver bruises like a peach."

Oliver sent him a wry look. "Helpful as always, thanks, Digg."

"I live to serve."

"Now that you're warmed up, how about we test the agility of the suit?" said Felicity. "You can do that crawling up buildings thing you like to do so much."

"It's called parkour," said Oliver.

"You can call it Calliope if you want, but just please be careful," said Felicity firmly. "The suit it going to enhance your muscle power. You'll need to compensate otherwise you'll break your neck." She gave him a worried look. "Not the point of the exercise here."

"It'll be fine," said Oliver confidently. "Don't worry. I know the physical capacities of my body."

"But you don't its capacity with the suit on," fretted Felicity. "So just go easy, okay? At least until you get the feel for things."

"Stop fussing, Felicity," said Oliver easily. "I adapt quickly to new stimuli in my surroundings. I'm a chameleon like that." He looked over at the scaffolding lining part of the wall of the massive, three story warehouse behind them. Some of the platforms in the scaffolding still had piles of large concrete blocks which had just been abandoned along with the warehouse. "I'll get up onto the roof of that warehouse using the scaffolding." Oliver eyed the distance. "Normally it'd probably take me about twenty seconds. We'll see what the suit can shave off that." He looked at Diggle. "Are the cameras all set?"

Diggle held up the remote control for all the cameras. "You're ready for your close up, Marilyn."

Oliver walked over to the warehouse and craned his head back, looking up at the scaffolding, looking for the best place to aim for first. There was a platform about fifteen feet off the ground and that looked like a good place to start to Oliver because he wouldn't have been able to make that kind of jump normally. He tensed his muscles, looking to propel himself upwards. Oliver's feet left the ground and just kept going. A surge of warmth enveloped him from the suit and Oliver found himself shooting past his mark and he just kept going on his upward trajectory, crashing through another platform above his intended one which sent him careening towards the warehouse and suddenly he was on the roof of that warehouse but it was only a temporary stop. The impact had the suit causing a recoil of energy and Oliver bounced off the roof and crashed down onto a window ledge below, falling off that one onto the next one down before finally the ten feet or so to the ground, landing face down.

"Oliver!"

He heard Felicity's panicked cry as the dust settled around him and then she and Diggle were kneeling beside him. "I'm okay," he grunted.

"Are you sure?" worried Felicity. "You're not hurt anywhere?"

"Well, my pride has seen better days."

"Good news, Chameleon," said Diggle. "You beat your twenty second mark on the way up. Better news is you were even faster on the way down."

Oliver gave a little groan as he pushed himself up off the ground and stood up, dusting himself down. "Okay, the suit had a little more juice than I gave it credit for," he conceded.

Felicity stood up as well, a concerned look etched on her face. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah," said Oliver dryly, "my face broke my fall, so that was lucky."

"Oliver, I warned you," said Felicity unhappily. She was helping dusting him down. "You need to adjust your output otherwise the return input is going to be too much for you to handle."

"I'm seeing that," he said dryly. "Okay, let me try that again."

Diggle had a mischievous glint in his eyes. "At least we know you've got a good handle on gravity."

Oliver gave him a disgruntled look. "Don't you have cameras to look after?" he pointed past Diggle. "One has fallen over."

Diggle turned around to see one of the cameras had indeed fallen over. "Okay, I'm on it. Just don't do anything hysterically funny before I've got it fixed."

Oliver put his hands on his hips. "How is me falling down a funny thing?"

"Trust me, when you watch back the tape and I add the funny music to it, there is no way it's not going to win America's Funniest Home Video," said Diggle teasingly.

"This comedy routine isn't going to win you employee of the month, you know," said Oliver flatly.

"Just as well I don't work for you then," said Diggle easily as he walked off.

Oliver looked back to Felicity who was still looking a little anxious. "Felicity, I'm—"

"Fine, I know, you keep saying."

"I've got my eye in now with the suit. I'll do better this time." He looked over at Diggle, calling out to the other man. "Ready?"

Diggle gave him the thumbs up.

Oliver put his hands on Felicity's arms and moved her a little out of the way, up against the warehouse wall. "Just watch. I've got this." Oliver mentally prepared himself, factoring in what he now knew about the suits capacity. Once again he launched himself at that initial platform but with a lot less power. He landed on it with no problem and then immediately gave an agile leap to the platform and the next. In less than ten seconds he was on top of the roof again, this time completely in control. He grinned down at Felicity. "How was that?"

"Better," said Felicity with obvious relief, craning her neck to look up at him. "Way better."

Oliver looked around for his next challenge. Approximately thirty feet away was the water tower. Oliver backed up a little and then threw himself across the distance. He miscalculated slightly, making the jump but smashing into the metal wall of the tank. The suit took the brunt of the force and left an indent in the metal.

"Oliver!"

"No problem," said Oliver, recovering quickly. "Just didn't have enough room to stop myself." Suddenly the water tower gave a shudder and Oliver looked down to see one of the four supports creaking and moving a little.

"Oliver, I think you should get off that thing!" said Felicity anxiously. "It doesn't seem very sturdy."

Oliver had to agree but before he could react, the weakened metal leg compressed down, lurching the tower violently to the right. Unbalance, Oliver was forced to hurl himself from the tower back onto the scaffolding. The shot of adrenalin he had from the quick motion had him applying too much force again and he overshot the mark, missing the platform and careening into more scaffolding supports. Oliver just managed to catch one of the cross bars of the scaffolding, stopping himself from falling any further. He looked down, stricken to see Felicity trying to scurry out of the way of a mass of falling concrete blocks he'd knocked from their perch in the process. His breath caught in his throat as she narrowly avoided being buried under the blocks, only the bottom of her coat jacket being caught under the rubble instead.

"Look out!" yelled Diggle, just as Oliver heard an almighty crack behind him. His head snapped around in time to see the water tower give way properly now, one of its damaged supports twisting over on itself and sending the large metal silo crashing towards the earth and heading directly for Felicity.

"Felicity!" yelled Oliver, watching in horror as she desperately tried to pull her coat free from the pile of concrete blocks to get out of the way. Oliver didn't think, he just reacted. He let go of the scaffolding rail he had a hold of and tucked his arms close to his body so he could free fall as straight and fast as he possibly could to get to her before the mass of hurtling metal did. Oliver had no way of knowing if the suit could absorb the impact the three story drop would have on his body but he didn't care. He just needed to get to Felicity. Hitting the ground, there was a flash of warmth over his entire body but his bones didn't crumple, tendons didn't snap. Oliver launched himself at Felicity, desperate to get her free but it was already too late, he could feel the force of the air being pushed away behind him as the water silo was about to hit them both.

"Oliver!" screamed Felicity, her face contorted with fear as she could obviously see the fate which was going to befall them over his shoulder.

Oliver threw himself at her, holding his body protectively over hers, palms flat against the brickwork behind her on either side of Felicity's face. Her eyes were wide and full of terror in that split second as they locked gazes and then Oliver felt the enormous metal water tank impact against his back. He gritted his teeth, using every ounce of muscle strength he possessed to absorb as much of the shock as he could. The suit glowed through his clothes, lighting up at the surge of extreme energy exchange. Oliver's arms shook as he dug deep to find the strength to keep the avalanche of metal from crushing Felicity where she stood. Clouds of dust billowed up around them as the water tower finally came to rest. "Felicity," he grunted, red-faced from the effort it had taken to keep himself lifted away from her. The water tower gave one final lurch, forcing Oliver up against Felicity hard as his arms gave way. Felicity gave a strangled gasp and Oliver realized he was crushing her. Over two tons of warped metal was pressing him in against Felicity and she had a brick wall behind which had no give in it either. The suit was protecting him but Felicity had no such defense. Her stricken gaze held his as all the color drained from her face. Felicity's lips moved but no sound was coming out because there was no air left in her lungs.

"No!" said Oliver in distress, pushing back as hard as he could against the metal at his back but it was no use, he couldn't budge that much mass, even with the suit. Felicity's eyes were rolling back in her head and Oliver realized he was going to watch her die right in front of him unless he thought of a way out of this for the both of them. "Felicity, no!" His own breathing was constricted but he didn't let himself think about that. Instead he focused on the only possible exit he could think of. Oliver balled his fists and jerked back his right hand before pile driving it into the brick wall behind Felicity. Bits of mortar and brick exploded around them as his exoskeleton-enhanced punch did real damage. Oliver threw a punch with his left hand now, making inroads into the wall on the other side of Felicity. She was hanging limply against him now, not moving at all, head lolling to one side. Oliver started to pummel frantically at the wall, throwing as much of his strength into each punch as he could muster. The wall behind Felicity started to crack, bricks shattering with each blow and then suddenly Oliver had done enough damage that the wall actually gave way. Felicity fell backwards against the crumbling slab of wall and Oliver followed, both of them hitting the ground but Oliver made sure he didn't land on top of Felicity again, managing to push himself off her and roll to one side.

"Oliver! Felicity!"

Oliver could hear Diggle's concerned calling out of their names in the distance as he attempted to get past all that metal and bricks but Oliver's attention was only on Felicity. He didn't take his eyes off her pale face as he scrambled to his knees and leant over her. "Felicity," he said urgently. The lack of color in her cheeks was scaring Oliver and he hastily put his ear to her lips, desperate to hear her breathing. There was a faint wisp of warm air against his skin and Oliver could have cried from the relief. He lifted his head and cupped Felicity's cheek. "Felicity, open your eyes." Oliver's thumb stroked her dust-covered cheek, trying to encourage some color back there. "Felicity, you need to open your eyes and look at me," he ordered her intently. Oliver found himself unable to catch his own breath as Felicity lay so frighteningly still on the ground but then she gave the faintest of groans, eyelids flickering. Relief surged through Oliver, making him feel giddy. He bent down and pressed his lips against her forehead. "Thank God," he whispered shakily against Felicity's still cold skin, "thank God."

Diggle appeared over the top of the wall of metal, sliding down the other side to rush to both of their sides. "Are you two alright?" He was on his knees beside Felicity, taking her hand as she slowly came back to full consciousness.

"Felicity passed out," bit out Oliver, his jaw hard. "I was crushing her."

Diggle looked more than a little disconcerted. "How the two of you weren't pulverized into patty cakes I don't know."

Oliver's eyes were still on Felicity as she gradually came to. "The suit absorbed the impact, let me punch through the wall."

"Damn but that's a hell of a way to test the capacity of that thing," said Diggle unsteadily.

Didn't Oliver know it but Felicity was opening her eyes now and that was all he could think about. "Lie still," he ordered her quickly as she struggled to sit up. "Take a minute to catch your breath."

Felicity blinked up at them, looking between their concerned faces. "Wh-what happened?" Her eyes went a little wide as she suddenly remembered. "The water tower." Felicity looked suddenly fearful. "Am-am I dead?"

"No," said Oliver quickly, "you're not dead."

Felicity looked at him uncertainly. "Are you?"

Oliver smiled. "No, I'm not dead either."

"That's good," she said dazedly. "That's good that were both not dead." Felicity went to prop herself up on her elbows.

"Easy," Diggle instructed her as both men put a hand to her back to help support her.

Felicity looked around at the carnage, at the twisted metal of the water tank and the fact she was lying on a section of brick wall. "Did-did you punch your way through the wall?" she asked in disbelief, obviously trying to piece together what had happened.

Oliver nodded. "Yes."

"Damn," said Felicity shakily, "my suit kicks ass."

Oliver's smile widened. "Yeah, it really does." The exoskeleton had saved both of their lives tonight.

Felicity sat up properly and then gave a bit of a groan, clutching her hands to her chest.

"What is it?" asked Oliver, instantly concerned. "What's wrong?"

"You've broken my boobs," groaned Felicity, face screwed up as she put protective hands up against both breasts. "Ow!"

"Are you sure it's not your ribs?" asked Diggle, face lined in concern. He looked at Oliver. "We should get her to a hospital for x-rays."

"I don't need x-rays," protested Felicity as she gingerly rubbed at her chest. "It's definitely my boobs. I feel like they've been pushed out my back."

She went to stand up and Oliver was right there, arm around her, supporting her. "Diggle is right, we need to get you checked out properly," he said determinedly.

Felicity pushed her glasses up her nose and blew some lose hair out of her face as she carefully straightened up. "And tell them what? That I've sprained my boobs when Oliver Queen ground me up against a brick wall?" she asked sarcastically. "Yeah, no, I think I'll pass on that one. The tabloids are going to have to find another meal to dine out on."

Felicity dusted herself down and to Oliver's great relief she didn't seem to be suffering any kind of permanent after effects from the blackout. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Felicity looked at him, her own gaze sweeping over him. "Are you sure _you're_ okay?" she countered. "You just took a couple of tons of metal to the back. Maybe you've broken ribs or something?"

"No," said Oliver, "I'm fine. The suit took the brunt of the impact."

Suddenly Felicity was back in scientist mode. She put a hand to his chest, feeling several different places. "And you didn't overheat?" she asked intently.

"No."

"I have to analyze the data on this," said Felicity excitedly. "There is going to be so much to look at."

Diggle half-smiled. "I guess you really are fine," he said in relief. "Listen to you getting your geek on."

Oliver grimaced. "I think I'd still be happier if we had someone with an actual medical degree confirm that."

"We don't have time for that," said Felicity dismissively. "I need to get back to the Foundry and start analyzing this data."

"I think you should take the rest of the night off," said Oliver intently. "You almost died tonight."

"And what's the most important part of that sentence?" she challenged him.

"Died," said Oliver without hesitation.

"No," said Felicity in exasperation, "almost, I _almost_ died.

Oliver shook his head at her. "Felicity—"

"Come on," she interrupted his concerns, "you need to get out of that suit and then we can go back to the Foundry. I want to get started."

Oliver and Diggle exchanged resigned looks and gave in. The two men helped Felicity climb back out of the rubble and then they headed back towards the van.

Felicity looked over her shoulder at the carnage they were leaving behind. "I wish there had been a camera on to capture you going through the wall," she lamented.

"Capturing the moment for science wasn't my biggest concern right then," said Oliver as they arrived back at the van. "Making sure I didn't crush you to death was my main priority."

"And I appreciate that," said Felicity quickly. "It's just it would have been cool to record it to study later. I guess we can set the wall thing up again." Oliver sent her a sharp look and she continued on quickly. "Sans the part where I'm being squished into a smudge on the wall by the chest of a local billionaire."

"But not tonight," said Diggle firmly. "Oliver's right, I think we should quit while we're ahead."

"But the data," protested Felicity.

"It isn't going anywhere."

"I'm too wired to just go home to bed," she argued.

"That's just the adrenalin from a near death experience talking," said Oliver knowingly. "Trust me, when that leaves your system you'll want to take it a bit easy."

"You two can argue in the van," said Diggle. "I'm going to get the rest of our equipment."

Oliver climbed into the back of the van and held out a hand to help Felicity up. "The suit," she reminded him. "I need the suit." Felicity then turned her back so he could start undressing. As he did, she pulled out her lap top and started bringing up data. "I can't believe how the suit performed tonight. I'm so excited. Lucius is going to be blown away by how well it managed under extreme situations."

Oliver quickly stripped off his clothes. "It'll be even better when the suit isn't the thing which caused the extreme situation in the first place," he noted wryly.

"Hey, no throwing shade at the suit," said Felicity sharply. "I warned you about compensating for the excess energy distribution but you didn't listen. It's designed to give you more energy back then you put in and you have to make allowances for that."

"I thought I was." Oliver pulled back on his t-shirt and sweat pants. "I just need a little more practice. But next time I want you a good distance away. I'm not taking any more risks with your safety while we test this thing."

"I have to be up close and personal to evaluate the suit," said Felicity as Oliver moved around to take a seat across from her in the back of the van.

"Felicity, it's too dangerous. Tonight was a narrow escape. I'm not letting you put yourself in that position again," said Oliver determinedly.

"Aeschylus."

Oliver's eyes narrowed. "Did you just sneeze?"

"Aeschylus was an author of Athenian tragedies around 455BC."

"Okay," said Oliver slowly.

"He died when a tortoise was dropped on his head from a great height by an eagle who mistook his head for a rock which could crack open the tortoise's shell," she explained.

Oliver blinked. "And again… okay."

"My point is that death and danger can happen any time, any place and anyhow." Felicity gave him a pointed look. "And you're the last person in the world to give the 'it's too dangerous' speech. You're always throwing yourself into harm's way."

"That's different," he protested.

"It's different because you're doing it for a reason and you believe in that reason," pointed out Felicity. "And that's how I feel about this suit and the potential it has for keeping you a whole lot safer out on the streets than you are now. The potential benefits far outweigh the possible dangers."

Oliver knew he wasn't going to win this argument which he found deeply frustrating.

Felicity smiled. "Gotcha, haven't I?"

"I'm regrouping," said Oliver stubbornly. "Give me a moment."

She patted his leg. "Take your time. You're still not going to win this argument."

"You don't know that," he grumbled. "I could come up with something brilliant and turn this thing on its head."

"Of course you could," she said, indulging him. "And while you're waiting on that epiphany of counter-argument brilliance, I'm going to start analyzing some data."

Oliver watched Felicity turn her attention back to her lap top. He studied her profile, trying not to think how close he'd come to losing her tonight. Felicity was intent on dismissing it as nothing but Oliver had been the conscious one, the one who'd watched her slipping away from him. Even though this wasn't the first time he'd seen Felicity in danger, Oliver couldn't escape the fact that it was getting harder and harder for him to dismiss it all as part of the job Felicity had signed up for. Oliver remembered that very first night when he'd turned up in Felicity's car, shot and bleeding to death and asking her to take him to the Foundry. He'd survived that night because of her and he remembered Diggle's concern about bringing Felicity into the fold. Oliver had told him that he could protect Felicity, keep her safe, no matter what. He'd been so sure that was true but as their lives became more dangerous by the day, Oliver was beginning to really feel the fragility of that promise.

"You're staring."

Oliver gave a little start at Felicity's vague accusation.

"Have I got something on my face?" Felicity put a self-conscious hand to her face.

Oliver shook his head. "No." The he realized she did. "Actually, you've got a smudge right there." He touched his cheekbone.

Felicity scrubbed away at the mark. "And were you ever going to tell me about it or just let me walk around looking like the little match girl?"

"I thought it looked cute on you."

Felicity rolled her eyes. "Nice to know I have a way with dirt. That should pave the way for a bright future for me."

The van dipped as Diggle climbed back on board, all of the cameras in hand. "Okay, we ready to roll?"

"Yep."

"Yes."

Diggle climbed into the front, taking the wheel and Oliver took the passenger seat seeing as Felicity was clearly going to be all about her lap top on the drive back to the Foundry. Diggle started up the van and they were pulling away. Oliver looked back over his shoulder at the carnage they'd left behind. "I wonder if anyone is going to ask questions about that?" he pondered aloud.

"Let's hope not," said Diggle wryly. "Either way, it was a victimless crime, which, in Starling City, is pretty much a win."

Oliver had to agree with that logic as Diggle drove them along the row of docks to get them back on the main road back into town.

Suddenly Felicity's voice came from the back. "Hey, is it just me, but should abandoned warehouses have less of a peopley-motif going on?"

Both he and Diggle turned around to look out the window to where Felicity was pointing. There was a row of warehouses to their left but behind them, there was another row and through the gaps of the first row, there were a lot of black vans moving around and glimpses of people scurrying about.

Diggle slowed the car down to a standstill and turned off the headlights so as not to advertise their position. "There is certainly a lot of activity."

"Guess we're not the only ones looking for a little privacy," said Oliver grimly. "But something tells me their motives aren't quite as pure. Diggle, pull the van in behind that warehouse."

"Oliver, what are you doing?" asked Felicity in concern.

"I'm just going to have a quick look to see what is going on." He reached into the back of the van and grabbed out his hooded sweat shirt, putting it on.

"I don't think that's a good idea." Felicity looked at Diggle. "Digg, tell him."

"Felicity's right. You're not even in your Hood outfit."

"Or the exoskeleton," added on Felicity.

"No time." Oliver glanced over his shoulder at all the activity. "They're pulling out very fast. I need to go now if I've got a chance of seeing just exactly what is going on in that warehouse." He grabbed his bow and quiver next. "I won't be long. This is strictly recon only. Digg, bring the van round up ahead there. I'll just have a quick scout around and meet up with you there."

"At least take a communicator," said Felicity unhappily, handing him an earpiece. "We can stay in touch that way, in case there is any trouble."

"There won't be." Oliver had a thought. "Hand me one of those cameras too. There might be something worth keeping a record of."

Felicity handed him the camera and shook her head at him. "I don't think this is a good idea."

"It'll be fine, don't worry." Oliver climbed out of the van and pulled the hood of his shirt up to hide his face. "We'll rendezvous in five."

"Be careful," Diggle instructed him.

"Always," said Oliver, his mind on the task at hand now. He started to jog towards the decidedly unabandoned warehouse, intent on finding out what exactly was going on. Instinct told him it was going to be nothing good.

And as always, his instincts would turn out to be right.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N****: And another chapter as I endeavor to keep this story bumping along like a bumpy thing running late for an important engagement. More action in this chapter, but it's action which is going to set up the whole story, so, it's important for that fact alone. :D It gives an inkling where this story might be going. **

**As always, I appreciate the comments, faves and follows. One of my readers asked if we'll actually get to see Bruce Wayne in this fic? To which I reply… I don't know. Helpful, aren't I? I've actually got lots of ideas for this fic, so much so there will actually be a follow up one, providing the interest is there, of course. It's entirely possible Bruce might make an appearance at some point but I'm just not sure as I write this. **

**Well, I can't sit around here all day shooting the breeze, I've got a gratuitous nude scene to write for Ollie in an upcoming chapter. Poor boy. I suppose I should feel a little bad about sexually exploiting him this way… *waits for feelings of remorse to kick in… continues on blithely when no such feelings are forthcoming*. I guess there are some things in this world which just call out to be objectified shamelessly and Oliver's bot bot just happens to be one of those things. I'd feel badly about it but apparently I have no moral compass, so, what are you going to do, right? **

**Anyways, hope this chapter isn't too dull for you and things will start to kick off a little bit in the next chapter. Hope you'll join me for both. Now, excuse me, I'm hearing the call of the wild (aka Oliver's buttocks) and I really must answer…**

**CHAPTER THREE**

Oliver slunk back behind the stack of crates, using the darkness to his advantage as he watched all the activity around the warehouse. Men dressed all in black hurried about, loading large pieces of technical-looking equipment onto the backs of vans. Other men were wheeling out big, rectangular glass topped boxes and stashing them away in other vans. Oliver couldn't see what was in the boxes. He needed to get closer. With the cat-like agility he took for granted now, he used the boxes in front of him to easy scale up the side of the warehouse and slip through a first story window. Once inside he crouched back into the shadows and scanned the area below. The quickly disappearing remnants of what looked to be some kind of laboratory was being dismantled before his eyes. The men doing the dismantling were moving at speed, obviously desperate to clear the area. Oliver could only surmise they must have heard the water tower going over and decided they were compromised now, or about to be.

A dark-haired woman with a striking forelock of white running through it stepped out into the midst of things. She seemed to be calling the shots, ordering the men as to what she wanted removed next. The woman looked to be in her mid-forties and was wearing a white laboratory coat. Oliver pulled out his camera and focused it on her, recording the activity below and her involvement. That would at least give Felicity something to start researching what exactly was going on here. Oliver quietly moved along the beams of the first floor, angling for a better position to see what was going on. Another of those long, rectangular glass top boxes was wheeled away, the men and the woman going with it. There was only one of the boxes left. Oliver took his opportunity and dropped down to the ground. He hurried over to the box and looked inside. His expression registered surprise at seeing there was someone actually inside the box. Through the glass top, Oliver could see a bare-chested man, completely unmoving. He put a hand to the glass and it was cold to the touch. Too cold for anyone to survive. That meant the man was dead. What where these people doing with dead bodies? Oliver had a deep suspicion whatever the answer was, he wasn't going to like it.

The man had a set of dog tags around his neck and Oliver knew it was his only chance at identifying this man and possibly giving his family some closure. There really wasn't too much else he could do for him. A quick scan of the refrigerated coffin and Oliver found the opening mechanism. He glanced back over his shoulder as he activated it, knowing that he didn't have much time to do this because they'd be back any second to retrieve the last body. A blast of cold air hit Oliver as he turned his attention back to the corpse. He reached out to take the dog tags but just as he picked them up, an icy hand suddenly grabbed his wrist and the eyes of the man Oliver had thought was dead snapped open. Oliver made a shocked sound but quickly recovered. "It's okay," he said hastily, keeping his voice low. "You're okay, I'm going to get you out of here." Oliver pushed back the glass cover all the way and reached in, helping the freezing man to climb out of the refrigeration unit. The man was only dressed in what looked to be the bottom half of a wet suit. Oliver grabbed his arm, putting it over his neck to help support him. "Come on, we have to move." He started to hurry them towards a side exit he could see but suddenly the woman and four of her men were back. They froze at seeing Oliver until the woman came to her senses first.

"Kill him!" she ordered without hesitation, her French accent obvious.

Oliver quickly set down the man he'd been half-carrying to the exit and faced off against his attackers. They drew their guns but Oliver was too fast. He dispensed three of them with an arrow each and moved in to disarm the fourth, breaking his arm in three places in the process. A quick knee to the face while the man was screaming in agony put paid to him. He turned and faced the woman, keeping his face in profile and his hood protecting his face. "What are you doing here?" he demanded to know. "What are you doing to these men?" Oliver set an arrow to his bow and pointed it directly at her. "Tell me… _now_!"

The woman tilted her chin defiantly, looking back at him.

Oliver pulled back on the bowstring, intending to send an arrow by her ear and frighten her but suddenly he was being attacked from behind, wrestled to the ground by the very man he'd been endeavoring to save.

"Il veut t'enlever à moi, empêche le de faire ça!" said the woman quickly, stepping back out of the way.

The man gave an unhuman growl and immediately started to attack Oliver with a mindless ferocity. Oliver managed to buck the man off his back, rolling to his feet and putting up a placating hand. "I'm trying to help you," he said sharply.

Clearly the man wasn't interested in help as he charged at Oliver, a murderous look in his eye. They were equally matched in height and weight and Oliver could tell in an instance as soon as they engaged in fighting that this man was highly trained. But Oliver was better. Oliver countered each one of the man's violent attacks, using the fact the man was getting more out of control with each punch he threw against him.

**#**

Felicity fidgeted in her seat. "His five minutes are up? Where is he?" She looked at Diggle who was also looking concerned and then put a hand to her earpiece. "Oliver, what's happening? Where are you?"

**#**

"Oliver, what's happening? Where are you?"

"In the middle of something right now," grunted Oliver as he narrowly avoided having his throat crushed by a vicious punch thrown by the other man. "Give me a minute." Oliver kicked out at the man's leg, crunching his knee under his boot and causing his opponent to drop to his knees. Oliver used his advantage, landing a hard punch on his face and following through with his elbow to knock the man unconscious. He swung back around to face the woman again, her eyes going wide at seeing him defeat the other man. She immediately scrambled to retrieve something from a nearby counter, pulling a USB stick from a lap top and then turning to run. Oliver caught up with her easily, grabbing her arm and swinging her around violently. She struggled against him but he wrestled the USB stick from her hand, knowing it must be important. "Why do I think the police are going to be interested in this?" he growled at her.

"Don't touch her!"

The screamed order came a split second before Oliver was lifted off his feet and pile driven into the ground. He lost perspective for a split second, his world suddenly all topsy turvey at the assault from a man who should have been down for the count. Oliver barely had enough presence of mind to bring his feet up to protect himself from the other man throwing himself on top of him. Oliver kicked him off and flipped himself to his feet but only in time for the man to take another run at him, grabbing Oliver so his feet were off the ground and running backwards with him until he was violently pounded into a steel wall behind him. Oliver ducked out of the way of a punch which would have just about taken his head off his shoulders. There was no way his assailant hadn't broken bones with that missed blow and sure enough, Oliver could see bits of splintered bone poking through mangled flesh as the man drew back for another punch. It was like he didn't even register the injury.

Oliver had the sense he was fighting some kind of rabid dog. Every vein in the other man was popping out of his body, every muscle bunched into extreme tension. He was red-faced, sweating all over and looking like he had no intention of stopping. Oliver knew he couldn't play around anymore. His opponent wasn't going to stop. In a quick move which saw him side-step out of the way of the other man, Oliver grabbed his arm, flipping him over his back and snapping the radial bone in the process. His adversary didn't even blink, just continued to come at him with an enraged violence Oliver had never seen before. It was ducking another blow from that mangled fist that Oliver heard a loud bang behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and realized that they were actually in some antechamber and the woman had just closed the heavy metal door on them. Oliver's attention was forced back on his assailant when the man rammed him up against the wall again. Oliver just managed to get his hands up to defend himself as the other man held him against the wall and attempted to tear his jugular vein out with his teeth. With a sharp upwards motion of his palm, Oliver broke the man's nose and that snapped the man's head back just enough for Oliver to slip an arm up and wrap it around his neck. With a practiced ease, Oliver snapped his neck, knowing it was the only way he was going to survive this. It was killed or be killed. The man was finally done, crumbling to Oliver's feet as Oliver tried to catch his breath, breathing heavily from such an intense fight. Now he just had to get out of this room. Oliver swiftly pulled the dog tags from the man's neck and swung around, looking to get himself out of the room. The woman's face was still at the window in the door and she gave him a dark look. Oliver marched over to the window to face off against her. "Open the door!" he ordered her. "I'm not working alone. You're not going to get away with this."

The woman gave a cool smile and stepped back but not before making a small movement. Oliver didn't know what she was doing until suddenly a green gas was shot out from vents above his head. The woman arched an eyebrow at him, backing up and then turning her back on him and simply walking away. Oliver put a hand over his mouth and threw himself against the door, knowing this wasn't good. The door didn't budge and now Oliver really wished he'd listened to Felicity when she'd told him to put the suit back on. The exoskeleton would have helped him make short work of the door but without it he didn't have a chance. "Diggle," he said urgently. "I need help! I'm locked in a room in the warehouse and it's filling up with gas." Oliver pulled up his sweater to cover his face. "Hurry!" he coughed, feeling his lungs begin to fil with the noxious green fumes.

**#**

Diggle leapt from the van, grabbing his gun. "Felicity, take the wheel. Count to two hundred and then drive around to the side entrance of the van. I'll meet you there with Oliver."

"I knew this would happen," fretted Felicity as she slid over to take the driver's seat. "Why doesn't anyone listen to me?"

"The 'I told you so's' are for later," said Diggle quickly. "Right now we've got bigger worries. Remember, two hundred, then come and get us." He started to run towards the warehouse, already hearing Felicity starting to count behind him.

"One mississippi, two mississippi…"

Diggle raced to the warehouse where all the vans were pulling out at speed. A woman in a white lab coat was shouting orders and then she was getting into one of the black vans as well. Diggle made his way to the side entrance he could see, making sure he kept out of their way. He didn't need anyone trying to stop him right then and slow him down. "Oliver, I'm nearly there," he said hastily. "Hang on." There was no answer and that wasn't a good sign. Diggle pushed open the side door and burst through it, gun drawn. The place as deserted now with only some pieces of medical instrumentation and a few computers left. Diggle scanned the area and immediately saw a cylindrical steel room up against one wall and there was a green glow emanating from the window in the door. He rushed over to it but not before noticing that there were several blinking silver detonators littered around the room. The place was wired to go any minute. Diggle didn't hesitate. He was at the door, spinning the giant wheel at the front of it to unlock the door. Pulling his shirt up over his nose and mouth, Diggle let some of the gas escape so he could see inside properly. The gas cleared to reveal Oliver on the ground, leaning up against a wall and not moving. Another man's body lay face down on the ground, neck obviously broken. "Oliver!" Diggle rushed to his side.

Oliver's eyes flickered open. "D-Digg," he gasped.

"Hold on, buddy, I'm getting you out." Diggle bent down and picked Oliver up, swinging him up over his shoulder and then bolting out of the little room and out of that warehouse. As he ran, out of the corner of his eye, Diggle could see the flashing of all those detonators was getting more urgent. "Felicity!" he yelled. "In coming, _now_!"

**#**

Felicity sat in the car, gripping the steering wheel so tight her knuckles were white. "One hundred and seventy-nine I hate this part of the job… one hundred and eighty I am so not cool with this… one hundred and—"

"Felicity! In coming, _now_!"

Felicity gasped, starting violently. She fumbled for the keys. "I did not wear the right shoes for this." Her feet slipping on the pedals. "Why didn't I wear the right shoes for this?" The car engine roared into life and Felicity slammed her foot down on the gas pedal. The van took off at great speed and she clutched the wheel tightly as she headed directly for the warehouse. "They're okay," she chanted to herself. "Everything's fine." Suddenly two vans appeared directly in front of her and Felicity was forced to swerve violently to one side to avoid a collision with them. They didn't stop and either did Felicity. She continued to barrel down the avenue between the warehouses to get to Diggle and Oliver. Ahead of her there was the sound of an almighty explosion and the night sky lit up in a huge orange ball of fire. "No!" she gasped in horror, forced to swing the car around to avoid driving directly into the flames which shot out between the other warehouses. "Diggle! Diggle, are you alright? Where are you?" He had to have gotten to Oliver in time and gotten out. He had to. Felicity sat frozen behind the wheel. "Diggle!"

"Coming! On your right!"

Felicity could have cried with relief at the sound of Diggle's voice in his ear. He sounded like he was running and her head snapped around to see he was doing just that, Oliver slung over one shoulder. Diggle got to the van and opened the back door, quickly climbing into the van and lying Oliver down. Felicity turned in her seat. "What's happened to him? What's wrong?"

Diggle glanced out the side window. "We've got more bad guys on the way." He rushed to the front. "You take care of Oliver, I'll get us out of here."

Felicity willingly swapped positions with Diggle and was by Oliver's side as Diggle put the van into gear and with tires spinning, got them moving.

Felicity bent over Oliver. "Oliver," she said anxiously, putting her hand on his chest to feel for a heartbeat. He looked like he'd been in a fight, bloodstains smeared his sweater and Felicity hastily pulled it and his t-shirt up to check for injuries. Apart from a few new bruises and scratches, Felicity couldn't find anything that looked life threatening. "Thank God," she breathed. Suddenly a barrage of bullets flew over her head, shattering the glass in the back door of the van. Instinctively she threw herself over Oliver to protect him.

"Keep your head down!" Diggle ordered her over his shoulders. "These guys seriously do not want us to live to tell about this."

"Good advice," said Felicity weakly as she pushed her glasses back up her nose but kept her head down. Oliver still wasn't moving and she put an ear to his lips, making a horrible discovery. "Diggle! Oliver, he isn't breathing!" Felicity felt the panic setting in at that discovery.

"He was almost unconscious from the gas when I found him," said Diggle, expertly manoeuvring the van through the maze of warehouses and various other pieces of dock paraphernalia which was littered around the place even as the van chasing them down continued to shoot at them. "Felicity, you're going to have to do mouth to mouth!"

Felicity grimaced. "But I've only done it once, on a dummy named Carl," she said unhappily, "and I wasn't in a speeding car with people shooting at me at the time. It was in a nice, non-moving room and we had coffee and cake afterwards."

"Oliver's going to need you to adapt to your surroundings, Felicity," said Diggle urgently as he wrenched the wheel violently to avoid another van coming the other way. "If I stop this van, we're all dead."

Felicity squeezed her eyes closed, knowing Diggle was right. "Okay, you can do this. Just remember your ABC's." In the heat of the moment, her mind went blank as to what that was meant to stand for.

"Airways, breathing, compressions!" shouted Diggle from the front seat.

Felicity jumped. "Yes, okay, got it." She quickly checked that Oliver's airways were clear then she pinched his nose and tilted his head right back. "Strong breaths, make a good seal," she coached herself, praying that she was doing this right. Felicity bent down over Oliver and placed her lips over his firmly. She puffed a hard breath into Oliver's mouth, seeing out of the corner of his eyes his chest go up and down. Okay, that was a good sign. Felicity continued to breathe for Oliver, breathing twice more into his lungs before starting chest compressions. She counted thirty of those before going back to breathe for him. "You are not doing this to me, Oliver," said Felicity shakily, going back to the chest compressions. "Seriously, you are not doing this to me." She bent down and breathed twice more for him and then she stopped, putting her ear to his lips again. Oliver sucked in a strangled breath and Felicity nearly burst into tears in relief. "He's breathing!" she yelled out excitedly to Diggle.

"Good, let's keep it that way," he said, sliding the van violently to one side as they made it back to the main road.

Felicity grabbed to try and stop him sliding around but she just ended sliding with him into the van wall. "Diggle!"

"Sorry," said Diggle from behind clenched teeth as he concentrated on the road. "Find something to hang onto, I've got to get rid of these guys."

Felicity did her best to do that just, clinging tightly to Oliver as they slid around in the back as Diggle swerved the van this way and that, attempting to shake off the other vans. She tried to keep an eye on Oliver's breathing, to make sure he didn't stop again. Felicity suddenly remembered the recovery position and she went to roll Oliver onto his side just as Diggle took a corner very sharply and instead she slammed his chin into the wall. "Oh!" Felicity gasped in dismay. "Sorry, my bad!" She rubbed Oliver's chin for him even though the blow hadn't rendered him conscious again.

"Okay, I think we've ditched them," said Diggle with some relief.

"Good," said Felicity wholeheartedly, "because I felt like a bag of cats in a tumble dryer back here."

Diggle glanced in the rear vision mirror at them. "How's Oliver?"

"Breathing but he hasn't come round yet. Diggle, do you have any idea what that gas was?"

Diggle shook his head. "None," he said grimly. "I guess we'll try and figure that out at the Foundry."

Felicity held onto Oliver as Diggle drove them back to their lair. They were almost there when Oliver started to come around. He gave a little groan, his head stirring in Felicity's lap. She bent over him. "It's okay, you're okay," she reassured him quickly.

"F-Felicity," he stammered, trying to lift his head.

"Try not to talk just yet," she advised him. "We're almost at the lair. I'll check you out properly there."

Oliver's head flopped back into her lap. "Diggle," he rasped.

"It's okay, Miss Daisy," called back Diggle from the driver's seat. "I'm doing the driving. Just do as the lady says and take a moment. We're nearly there."

Ten minutes later they were helping Oliver down the stairs at the Foundry but he resisted when they went to lie him down on the table. "I want to sit up," he croaked. Oliver tentatively balanced himself on the side of the table, running a hand through his head. "My head," he groaned. "I feel like there is a stampede going on up there." Oliver wiggled his jaw. "And my chin really hurts."

"That's probably just an aftereffect of the gas," said Felicity quickly, gaze guiltily skittering away from his.

Diggle gave him an intent look. "Speaking of the gas, do we happen to know what it was exactly?"

Oliver shook his head and instantly regretted it, putting a hand to his temple. "No idea but I think they were doing some kind of human experimentation in that warehouse."

"Great," said Felicity morosely, "that always works out so fantastic for us."

"I've got to say, this was a rough night, even by our standards," conceded Diggle. "Not a fan of you tag teaming with the no breathing thing. Let's not do that again."

"No argument here," said Felicity unsteadily.

Oliver slipped his hand inside his sweat pants pocket and drew out the camera he'd taken with him. "I got what I could on video. There was a woman there, in a lab coat, she seemed to be in charge."

"I saw her," said Diggle quickly. "She on the tape?"

"Yes." He looked at Felicity. "Thought you might be able to run some facial recognition footage on her."

"I'll do my best."

Oliver dug into his other pocket. "I've also got this." He handed her a USB stick and a set of dog tags. "The woman was intent on getting that USB out of the place, so whatever is in it, I think it's probably important."

"And the dog tags?" asked Diggle.

Oliver grimaced. "They're from the guy who tried to kill me. I thought I was rescuing him from whatever experiments they were running on him but he seemed to see it differently. He attacked me like a crazy man."

"Not another super solider program," groaned Felicity.

"No," said Oliver slowly, absently rubbing his shoulder, "he didn't seem enhanced to me. I mean, I could defeat him but he just wouldn't stop. It was like he was in this psychotic rage or something. The only way I could stop him was to kill him." He made a regretful face. "But the guy still knew what he was doing. He was military trained, of that I'm sure. Don't know which one but he was highly trained." Oliver swayed a little as he sat there and Diggle and Felicity immediately moved to help him.

"I need to take some blood and test it," said Felicity worriedly. She put a hand to his brow. "You're sweating like crazy."

"I just need to get some sleep," said Oliver but his words were starting to slur. He groggily looked down at his blood-stained and dirt-covered shirt and pants. "I can't go home like this."

"I don't think staying here is an option," said Diggle firmly. "I can't be one hundred percent sure I shook those guys off my tail."

Oliver scowled. "They followed us?"

"Unfortunately," said Diggle grimly. "And they would have gotten a good look at the van licence plate so I need to dump the car before they see it sitting outside the Foundry."

Oliver suddenly sat up straighter. "My bow." He scowled. "I don't have my bow."

"You didn't have it with you when I grabbed you out of that gas chamber and there really wasn't time to stop and do a recon of the area," said Diggle. "I had to get you out of there."

"If the police find that bow—"

"The building went up like a bomb hit it," said Felicity quickly. She wrinkled her nose. "Which, I suppose it did. Your bow is nothing but ash now."

Oliver's jaw hardened. "But, if it isn't and the police find it. I wasn't wearing gloves, it has my finger prints on it and the police have a record of my prints."

Diggle held up a hand. "Okay, I'll dump the van and then go and go back to what's left of the warehouse and do a clean up sweep." Oliver lurched to one side again, looking decidedly pale and Diggle grabbed him. "In the meantime you really need to get some rest. You look like crap, man."

Oliver pulled a face. "That would-would be an improvement on how I feel," he muttered, swallowing hard.

"Let me take some blood and vitals and then you can come home to my place."

"Felicity, are you sure?" asked Diggle.

"It's safer than staying here," she pointed out. "And Oliver most likely just needs somewhere to sleep this off." At least Felicity prayed that was all he needed. "I'll take some blood and run it through the spectrometer, see if that gas left anything in your system and then just do a general work up."

Diggle nodded. "You do that and I'll start the clean up." He looked at Felicity. "Do you need me to wait and help you with Oliver?"

"I'm fine, Dig," said Oliver unsteadily. "We don't need your help. Just make sure nothing can be traced back to us and this area is secure."

"On it." Diggle started towards the stairs, addressing Felicity as he walked by. "I'll call you for an update."

Felicity nodded. "Okay. Be safe."

Diggle squeezed his arm as he went by her. "Always."

Once Diggle was gone she moved towards Oliver, grabbing the medical supply trolley on the way. "Okay, let's do this and then get you onto my somewhat comfortable sofa for the night."

Oliver nodded, eyelids drooping a little. "Sounds good," he said weakly.

Felicity pulled out a needle and syringe and grimaced. "This is going to make me nauseous than you," she promised him. Oliver didn't respond so Felicity just took a deep breath and drew the required blood, hoping against hope that she wasn't going to discover anything sinister but preparing herself for the worst. That seemed to be their speciality.

**A/N****: How did you go, did any of that make sense? I hope so. Anyone want to guess as to where this story might be heading? All the clues are there. Oh, and sorry about my French to any actual French speakers. It's the best Google translate and I can do. . **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N****: And yes, I'm spoiling you, another update before I go back to work. The more excited you guys are about seeing the next chapter, the more I want to post it. :D **

**A big thank you to all of the kind souls who helped me out with my horrendous attempts at French. Much appreciated, so thanks for that. :D **

**Quite a few of you have posted comments on my prechapter preambles that have a tendency to not so much amble as face plant from a great height into a tub of jello. I can't really take the credit for these death defying leaps into gelatinous globs of gooiness. That's all down to Hank, the monkey which turns the wheel which runs the cogs in my grey matter. Hank is an ex-laboratory monkey who I found when he came across some hard times once they no longer needed him to test which mascara gives you the fullest lashes. He worked for a while as a tattoo artist but gave a lot of clients fleas, so that ended badly, after that he'd worked the streets, offering to fling his faeces at people's enemies for a nominal fee. It was at his lowest point that he was approached by a group of Republicans who were interested in using his faeces flinging talents in politics, saying he was a perfect fit for the job. Hank knew he couldn't go any lower than becoming a politician so he reached out for help, looking to attend a self-help group for those addicted to excessive eye makeup. **

**That's how we met actually… I hit him with my car when he was on the way to one of those meetings. I ran him over and was a bit worried about the police getting involved, what with all those already outstanding warrants I've got, so I just… I don't want to use the word kidnapped… what's another word for putting a monkey you've just mowed down in the trunk of your car and driving off with him… let's call it a road kill clean up… although as it turned out, Hank wasn't dead, something I only found out when he came to as I was trying to bury his body in the back yard. Once he stopped biting me and flinging crap at my head, we came to an understanding. He wouldn't report me to the fuzz for trying to kill him… twice… and I'd let him take up residence in my brain, calling the shots with three square meals a day. It seemed a fair and equitable agreement in the end. Sure, there are times when I think Hank may have a few aftereffects from being hit by my car… and then my shovel… repeatedly, in the head… but all in all, I think it's working out quite well for both of us. **

**So, long story short (I know, too late), it's Hank that does the run up to these stories, so I've been passing all your messages along to him and he's suitably chuffed. Of course, the guy can turn on a dime, so watch out for that. Just try not to make direct eye contact with him. He sees that as an act of aggression… or as a sexual invitation. I can't remember which it is but bottom line, you don't want to be on the receiving end of either of those things from Hank, trust me, both involve the flinging of faeces so either way, you're screwed. **

**And that's Hank in a nutshell… my nutshell brain to be exact. Now, the story of my avatar with this story – Fernando Del Vecchio the Llama – that's another whole kettle of fish entirely but a story best kept for another day, I believe. In the meantime, I suppose you want to read what happens next in this story. Unless, of course, you just wandered into this story, looking for directions to another story but now you're trapped and can't find your way out. In that case, suck it, you're mine now and it's not only in space that no one can hear you scream… sic 'em, Hank!**

**CHAPTER FOUR**

Felicity staggered under Oliver's weight as she tried to get him through the door of her apartment. "Okay, Oliver," she puffed, "you have to help me a little here. Walk straighter."

"I am walking straight," muttered a disorientated Oliver and then promptly walked them into a wall.

"Ow!" complained Felicity, grabbing at her glasses as they almost fell off her nose. "Not straight into walls," she said in exasperation. "Straight into clear spaces." Felicity tightened her grip on Oliver's arm which was around her neck and tried to keep them both upright. "Here, lean on this bench." She disentangled herself from him and leant Oliver against her kitchen bench top. Felicity then went to close the door and lock it just as her phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID as she answered it. "Hi Digg, yes, we've made it."

"How's Oliver?" asked Diggle.

Felicity eyed the drunken-like state of Oliver unhappily as he attempted to stand up straight and ended up lurching over to one side, just managing to save himself from falling down completely by grabbing at the bench top. "Oh you know, still probably not able to operate heavy machinery. In fact, he seems to be getting a little worse." Oliver had another attempt at straightening up and managed to knock her jar of cookies onto the floor in the process, sending ceramic and cookie pieces skittering all over the place. Felicity winced at the noise.

"What was that?" asked Diggle in concern.

"Oliver putting me on a diet," sighed Felicity as she looked at the mess of broken cookies. Some of them might be still alright, right? Felicity had the feeling she was going to need the sugar boost tonight. "Oliver, stop moving around. Just stay where you are."

Oliver blinked groggily down at his shirt, which was still covered in blood and dirt. "I-I need to wash up," he mumbled. "Can't go home like this."

"You're not going home tonight, remember?" asked Felicity in exasperation as she gingerly picked her way through fragments of baked goods and the jar which once contained them. "You're staying here tonight. Just stop moving around. You'll hurt yourself."

"I'm fine," said Oliver unevenly, taking a couple of unsteady footsteps backwards and knocking over the lamp stand behind her, sending it crashing into the wall, shattering the bulb and putting a hole in the wall at the same time.

Felicity gave a groan. "I guess I didn't really need to get all of my bond back anyways."

"Felicity, it sounds like you need some help," fretted Diggle. "I'll come over."

"No," said Felicity quickly, "you need to clean up after this mess from tonight. That's the most important thing now. I can take care of Oliver."

"Did any of your tests show anything yet?"

Felicity grimaced as she tried to help Oliver untangle himself from the lamp. "His endorphin levels are through the roof and lot of his other hormone chemistry is out of whack too. The spectrometer is still analyzing his blood for any toxins the gas may have introduced. That may take a while, probably until morning. His vitals are up but with all those hormones, including adrenalin, pumping through his body, it's not surprising. The whole thing is making him pretty disorientated."

Oliver had managed to untangle himself from the lamp but now seemed determined to get himself out of his dirty clothes. Unfortunately he'd chosen to start with his pants, without removing his shoes first. He was now staggering about the place, not seeming to be able to work out why he couldn't get his pants off over his shoes and crashing into different pieces of furniture in the process.

"Diggle, I've got to go," said Felicity hastily as she worried that Oliver was going to seriously hurt himself. "I'm having flashbacks to my Prom Night."

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?"

Felicity was by Oliver's side, trying to steady him as he careened about. "Take your shoes off first, then your pants," she instructed him loudly as Oliver abandoned trying to get his pants off and started on his shirt. "Yes, yes," said Felicity distractedly, "I told you, we'll be fine. I just need to get him to stay in one place."

"I'll call you when the cleanup is done."

Felicity was trying to hold onto Oliver as he stumbled about, now with his shirt stuck over his head.

"Felicity, I'm having a side effect from the gas," exclaimed a slightly panicked sounding Oliver. "I can't see anything. I've gone blind!"

"You've not gone blind," said Felicity in exasperation. "Diggle, I'll talk to you soon. I have to deal with this."

"Good luck."

"Thanks. I may need it." Felicity quickly hung up and tried to help Oliver pull his shirt the rest of the way over his head but he was now flailing about, bouncing off her walls and then he managed to somehow lurch through a doorway, ending up in her bedroom. Felicity quickly followed him, hopeful that a more confined space might work to her advantage. "Oliver, stop moving! Just stand still!"

"I am standing still!" shouted back a befuddled Oliver as he whirled around and walked at the same time, the pants around his ankles restricting unbalancing his movements even more, t-shirt still wrapped around his head, arms twisted all up in the material. The backs of his legs connected with Felicity's bed, sending him completely off-balance and Oliver toppled backwards, ending up lying diagonally across her bed in a tangle of clothes and body parts.

Felicity saw her opportunity. "Don't move!" she ordered him fiercely. "Stay exactly like that." Felicity rushed around to the other side of the bed so she was at Oliver's head and tried to get his head and arms out of the mangled wreck he'd made of his t-shirt. Easier said than done with Oliver squirming away and twisting his arms and head this way and that. "Stop moving!"

"I-I'm helping," said Oliver unsteadily.

"You're really not," said Felicity in irritation. She gave up as all her attempts to get his t-shirt off ended up only wrapping the stretch material more tightly around Oliver's face and neck.

"Can't-can't breathe," he panted, voice sounding strangled and weak. "Having-having a heart attack."

"Oh for heaven's sake," said Felicity in exasperation. That would so be her luck, a dead Oliver Queen in her bed, killed by a t-shirt. She grabbed for the drawer of her bedside table, opening it and fumbled inside. Felicity found the pair of scissors she was looking for and quickly set about cutting the offending material off of Oliver's body. She pulled the remnants of the shredded t-shirt away as Oliver sucked in a noisy breath, blinking dazedly in the light.

"I can see!" he gasped in amazement.

"Yeah, it's a miracle, Helen Keller," said Felicity dryly, pulling the last of the shirt away and discarding it on the floor.

Oliver's face was upside down as he grabbed her arm and squeezed tightly. "You saved me," he breathed.

"Yes, Oliver, I saved you from a t-shirt," said Felicity dryly. "My place in the superhero hall of fame is secured." She straightened up and walked around to the other side of the bed so she was at his feet. "Now, just lie still." Felicity grabbed one of his shoes and pulled it off his foot, and then she did the same with the other, along with his socks. With the shoes no longer an impediment, Felicity was able to pull Oliver's pants off without any further problem. "I'm undressing Oliver Queen in my bedroom," she muttered to herself, not really believing this was happening. "Guess I can strike that one off the bucket list." She straightened off, dusting her hands off. "Okay, you're no longer a weapon of mass destruction. Let's get you on the couch so you can sleep this off." To which Oliver simply responded with a snort-filled snore as he laid stretched out across her bed, having nodded off at some point during the undressing process. "Oh no you don't," said Felicity quickly. "That's my bed. The agreement was you got the sofa. Up you get, big boy." She grabbed his arm and pulled on it. Oliver didn't even budge. Felicity braced herself with one leg against the bed and tried again, pulling with all of her might but Oliver barely moved an inch. She blew out an exasperated breath and gave up, knowing she had no chance at moving Oliver from where he was obviously settled in to spend the night.

"Okay, fine, you win, you get the bed." She pushed her glasses up a nose made sweaty from her efforts and stared down at Oliver's sleeping form, clad only in his boxer briefs. Somehow, even unconscious, every muscle in his body still looked flexed. "I've got a nearly naked Oliver Queen in my bed," she said unsteadily, thinking about all the times she'd thought about having just that and now she was staring at the buffed muscled reality. Oliver stirred a little in his sleep and in the process emitted a quiet fart into the monumental moment Felicity was having. She pursed her lips at the result of Oliver's obviously highly relaxed condition. "Yup," she said mockingly, "living the dream alright." But then, spontaneous body functions aside, when was she ever going to get an opportunity like this again? "Probably never," said Felicity morosely, knowing Oliver had drawn very definite lines between them which he seemed determined never to cross. Their conversation earlier that night had confirmed that for her. Felicity pulled out her cell phone and snapped a picture of the slumbering Oliver in all of his glory, just to prove to herself that this was really happening. She grimaced as she looked at the picture. "Does this make me a bad person?" Felicity bit her bottom lip. Was it really that wrong to take a near naked photo of your boss when he was vulnerable and didn't have any say in the matter just so you could have a memento of the one and only time you were probably going to get him into your bed? Felicity sighed heavily. That was probably a yes to that question. She quickly deleted the picture, glad no one was around to see her moment of weakness.

Felicity went to her cupboard and pulled out a blanket and then laid it over Oliver, tucking him in. She took a seat on the side of the bed and made a face. "You really scared me tonight," she told him unevenly. "Don't ever stop breathing on me like that again. That was not cool." Oliver didn't respond, of course, still in a blissful state of slumber. She pulled the blanket up a bit more and tucked it in more securely around his neck. Felicity looked down at Oliver's face, enjoying a rare moment of being able to stare at him without fear of him catching her. "You really are beautiful," she whispered to him, knowing she'd never dare say anything like that to him when he was awake. "I mean, you're like ridiculously good-looking," she complained to him. "It's really not fair. And if you were just pretty, that would be one thing but you're so much more than that. That whole brooding dark hero thing really works for you." Felicity bit her bottom lip. "Works for me," she confessed unevenly. Felicity wiped away some dirt from Oliver's forehead, unable to stop thinking about how close yet again she'd come to losing him forever. "I love you," she said softly, the words slipping easily from her lips before she could stop them. Oliver's eyes flickered open and he looked up at her, their eyes meeting. Felicity gave a squawk of panic and grabbed a nearby pillow, slapping it down over his face, not meaning for him to have heard such a telling confession on her behalf. "You didn't hear anything," she said urgently. "You're dreaming." Felicity cautiously lifted the pillow and peeked at Oliver whose eyes were once again closed. After quickly checking that he was still breathing and she hadn't just smothered him, Felicity let out a relieved breath. "Okay, no more blurting out things that are going to get you into trouble, Felicity Smoak," she cautioned herself unsteadily.

Felicity stood up and went to leave him get some obviously much needed rest but paused at her doorway. She pulled out her phone and took another picture of the sleeping Oliver. "I'm only human," Felicity comforted herself, "and no one else has to know." She looked at the large stuffed owl which always sat on her bed and was now currently leaning up against Oliver as he lay there. She pointed a warning finger at the bird. "And that goes for you too, Professor Hoots-a-lot. You didn't hear or see anything, got that?" Felicity walked out of the bedroom and ran her hands through her hair. "What a night," she groaned. She and Oliver had both nearly died in separate incidences and now Diggle was out there trying to cover their tracks. Why did everything they touch have to end up with some kind of life or death situation? Felicity knew that was a rhetorical question but that didn't exactly help. She walked over to the sofa and started up her lap top, pulling out the USB stick and dog tags she'd brought home with her, along with the camera. "Okay, time to do a little research and see just exactly what the bad guys were up to tonight." Felicity knew she wasn't going to be able to get any sleep until Diggle called in to say he was all clear so she may as well spend her time doing something useful.

**#**

Diggle parked his car on the perimeter of all the frantic activity surrounding the now smoking remains of the warehouse. He'd already disposed of the van, setting light to it on the outskirts of town and driving away in a car he'd stashed nearby in case of emergencies. Diggle believed in being prepared and he had several places dotted around Starling City where he could find transport, money, fake ID's and weapons. You never knew what you were going to need and when, certainly not with the kind of life he'd chosen to lead. Diggle slipped into the crowd of emergency workers and police, keeping his head down. Walking around the back of a fire truck, he sneaked a fireman's coat and helmet, quickly slipping them on. Now blending in with the many firemen scurrying about, Diggle was free to get himself closer to see if anything had been retrieved from the fire. He recognized Quentin Lance talking to a fire investigator as a fireman walked out of the smoldering warehouse with something in his hand. Diggle grimaced as he recognized Oliver's bow. He got closer, pretending to be unkinking a hose line and listening in on their conversation.

"Found this in the debris," said the fireman.

Detective Lance's eyes lit up. "I knew it," he growled. "The Hood is up to his usual tricks."

"Haven't heard him being involved in explosions before," noted the fireman as Detective Lance grabbed an evidence bag and had him carefully place the bow into the plastic bag.

"Wherever that guy goes, disaster follows," said Lance grimly. He held up the bag and looked at the bow. "But if we can lift fingerprints offa this thing, we might finally have a lead on this vigilante."

"Detective Lance!" One of his uniformed police officers called out to him and Lance nodded that he was on his way. He stopped another police officer before he went. "Put this in my car." Lance handed over the bagged evidence.

Diggle kept his head down as Lance walked by him and then Diggle was following the cop with the bow. He waited until the other man had deposited the evidence in the back of Lance's car and walked away. Diggle surreptitiously sidled up to the car and in one deft movement, undid the lock and retrieved the bow. He secreted it away under his fireman's coat and then just kept on walking, away from the crime scene and with the damning evidence safely in his possession.

**#**

Oliver slowly fought his way out of a dark, dreamless sleep. He blinked against the morning light, trying to work out where he was. An intoxicating scent filled his nostrils as he turned his face into the sheets. Its heady fragrance was deeply familiar but he didn't know why. If just made him feel safe and secure for some reason. Oliver's slowly sharpening gaze focused on a stuffed toy owl, staring back at him with unblinking, oversized eyes. The owl and Oliver engaged in a staring competition as Oliver tried to work out what the hell he was looking at… and why. He sat up in bed and was immediately forced to put a hand to his throbbing head. Oliver felt like he'd been hit by a truck. _Had he gotten drunk last night?_ Memories of last night was foggy at best. And where was he? He was in a bedroom, a woman's bedroom judging by the items in the room but he had no idea whose. Oliver swung his legs over the side of the bed and attempted to stand up but found his legs surprisingly unsteady. He sat down again and waited for his head to stop spinning and then tried again. Oliver looked around the room and saw a pink dress hanging over the back of a chair. He walked unsteadily over to it and picked it up. The faint scent of that familiar perfume immediately assaulted his senses as he held it in his hands. He unconsciously lifted the material to his face and breathed deeply.

_Felicity_.

He blinked. _This was Felicity's bedroom?_ Snatches of last night came back to him. Oliver remembered the press of soft lips against his and he unconsciously put a hand to his lips at the memory. _Felicity had kissed him_. Oliver could recall the taste of her in his mouth and he felt his heart skip a beat and then continue beating with an unsteady tattoo. _Why did Felicity kiss him?_ Oliver looked back at the bed and then down at himself, dressed only in his boxer briefs. Okay, this couldn't be what it looked like, could it? Oliver ran an unsteady hand through his hair. Surely he'd remember something like that? Oliver noticed his pants neatly folded up on the dresser and he hurried over to them, pulling them on. He couldn't see his shirt but there was a grey shirt sitting next to his pants which seemed to have been left out for him, so Oliver pulled it on. Somehow this felt like a situation he should be fully dressed for. Oliver looked down at the t-shirt and frowned as he read the writing on the front of it. 'Are you my Mummy?' Okay, what did that mean? Nothing seemed to make sense today. From outside the bedroom door Oliver heard the unmistakable sound of Felicity's laughter and the sound had his stomach clenching uncontrollably. Oliver followed the laughter, walking out of the bedroom to see Felicity standing in her kitchen but she wasn't alone. Both she and Diggle had their back to him as they stood at the kitchen bench.

Felicity gave another laugh, bumping playfully against Diggle. "You're such a liar."

Diggle bumped her back. "I'm telling you, I had to throw down with a little old lady to get that last cronut, so think a lot of it."

"You see, that's why I love you, Diggle, ready to maim the elderly just so I get my sugar fix," said Felicity teasingly.

Oliver felt a sharp flash of annoyance at the picture of easy domesticity the two of them made and he was taken aback by the force of the unexpected emotion. "What's going on?"

The two of them swung around in unison.

"Awake at last, sleeping beauty," said Diggle easily. "We were beginning to think we'd need to start sourcing a handsome prince."

"How are you feeling?" asked Felicity solicitously.

"Like I've been dragged behind a herd of wild horses," said Oliver unevenly.

Felicity made a concerned clucking noise and came over to stand beside him. "I knew we should have taken you to hospital last night." She put a hand to his forehead. "You feel all hot. I think you've got a fever."

The touch of Felicity's soft hand was a cool relief against Oliver's brow and he was surprised at how good it felt. "Last night?" he asked unsteadily, staring down at her.

"After you were caught in that warehouse and were gassed," she prompted him. "Don't you remember?"

Suddenly Oliver did remember, that green gas filling the room, him trying to suck in air to oxygen-starved lungs when there was only more gas to be breathed in. "The warehouse," he said sharply. "I was trapped."

"Diggle got you out," said Felicity. "He saved your life."

"And Felicity saved your again when you stopped breathing," interjected Diggle.

"I stopped breathing?" repeated Oliver.

"You don't remember?" asked Felicity, a worried look on her face. "We went back to the Foundry first and then you said you couldn't go home, so I brought you here."

"And let me sleep in your bed," said Oliver, filling in more of the blanks. Fragments of last night were coming to him now.

Felicity wrinkled her nose prettily. "Well, let is a pretty strong word. A more accurate summation was that I couldn't get you out of it once you fell into it." She eyed him teasingly. "I've mentioned you're heavier than you look before now, right?"

"We slept together?" Oliver's stomach gave a painful backflip at the thought, his muddled brain trying to keep up.

Felicity gave him an odd look. "Oliver, I didn't sleep in the bed too."

"You didn't?"

"Yes, because I'm not some weird stalker who takes advantage of incapacitated men," she said hotly even as she surreptitiously pocketed her cell phone and avoided looking him in the eye.

"I'm sorry," he said unsteadily. "Of course you're not. I'm just a bit… disorientated this morning."

"You need coffee," said Felicity. "And Digg brought us breakfast."

"All the artery clogging, diabetes-inducing pastries you can eat," agreed Diggle, his eyes running over Oliver. "So, any side effects from last night, apart from the headache?"

"I'm kind of aching all over," conceded Oliver. "And my jaw really hurts for some reason."

"We all agreed last night that the jaw thing was a side effect of the gas," said Felicity hastily, her gaze skittering away from his when Oliver looked at her.

"We did?" asked Oliver in surprise.

"Yes."

He gave a little shrug. "Okay. Do we know what the gas was in the end?"

"I'm still running diagnostics on it," said Felicity, "however I do have some information for you. But first I think you need to eat something."

"I'm not really that hungry," said Oliver dismissively. "I'd rather get down to business."

Felicity laid a hand on his arm. "Oliver, I think you should eat something. You must be starving, even if you don't know it."

"Okay," said Oliver without hesitation. He blinked as Felicity moved away from him, surprised at how easily she'd changed his mind. Suddenly he was ravenous.

Felicity quickly poured him a cup of coffee and put some pastries on a plate, including the cronut.

Oliver arched an eyebrow. "I get the cronut?"

"The one who came closest to death gets the best pastries," said Felicity easily. "And last night you won… or is that lost?"

"I walked away from the thing, I call that a win."

"Technically Digg carried you away," said Felicity disapprovingly. "So, at best, I'd go with a draw."

"A draw isn't a loss," said Oliver philosophically as he tucked into his breakfast.

"Mm," said Felicity non-committedly.

Oliver wolfed down his breakfast, finishing his before the others were even halfway through.

"Glad you weren't hungry or we might be next on the menu," said Diggle wryly.

Oliver shrugged. "I guess being gassed into unconsciousness works up an appetite."

"I want to take your vitals again," said Felicity, moving to collect a blood pressure monitor and a thermometer. "Here, under your tongue." Oliver obediently placed the thermometer under his tongue as Felicity put the sphygmomanometer cuff around his arm. "And I want to take more blood when we go back to the lair."

"Okay," mumbled Oliver around the thermometer in his mouth. He watched Felicity as she was intent on measuring his blood pressure, pressing buttons on the automatic readout display to get it to start. She was close to him, blonde hair hanging lose by her face as she focused on the job at hand. As Felicity moved a little, that heady scent was back in Oliver's nostrils, the one he'd woken up to. It was so strong he could actually taste it but it wasn't a bad sensation. In fact, it felt really good. "Mare you mearing a mew murfume moday?" he asked her.

Felicity gave him a distracted and confused look. "What?"

Oliver took the thermometer out of his mouth. "Are you wearing a new perfume today?" he repeated.

"Don't take the thermometer out of your mouth until it beeps," she said in exasperation. "We'll have to start again." Felicity pressed a button and put it back in his mouth. "Don't take it out until it beeps and no, I'm not wearing a new perfume, I'm not wearing any perfume."

Oliver frowned a little. _Then what was he smelling?_ The scent was definitely associated with Felicity. "Mampoo?"

"What?"

Oliver pointed to her hair. "Mew mampoo?"

"New shampoo?"

He nodded.

"No, why, do you think I need to shampoo my hair?" She put a worried hand to her hair. "I did it yesterday. I don't wash my hair every day, it's not good for it."

"Your hair is fine, Felicity," Diggle reassured her. He gave Oliver a curious look. "What's up with you?"

"Mothing," mumbled Oliver, not really wanting to go into it as he didn't even know what 'it' was." The thermometer beeped in his mouth and Felicity withdrew it and looked at the read out.

"You're hot," she declared.

Diggle gave a little smirk. "Something tells me you're not the first woman to tell him that."

Felicity blushed a little and straightened up her glasses. "I mean you've got a bit of a temperature. It's not bad but we should keep an eye on it." She looked down at the blood pressure monitor. "But your blood pressure is down, so that's good."

"Can I ask a question?"

"Sure," said Felicity easily.

"Where is my t-shirt?"

"I had to cut it off you," said Felicity. "You were trying to kill yourself with it. It was you or the t-shirt. I flipped a coin, the t-shirt lost."

Oliver accepted that at face value. "Alright then, can I ask another question?"

"Shoot."

He looked down at the loaner t-shirt he was wearing. "This t-shirt is yours?"

"I sleep in it and it was the only one big enough to have a chance of fitting you."

"Okay, but I don't understand what's written on it. Are you my Mummy? What's that supposed to mean?"

Felicity and Diggle both grinned at him.

"It's a famous line from Doctor Who," explained Felicity.

"Doctor Who?"

"A British TV show about a time travelling alien," said Diggle.

"And you watch this show?" he asked Diggle in surprise.

"We both do," said Felicity blithely. "We're doing a tradeoff. I'm introducing Diggle to the joys of British TV, such as Doctor Who and Downton Abbey and he's training me to develop some upper body strength so I can defend myself better in the field." She looked down at her slight frame and gave a rueful smile. "We're doing Diggle's thing first," she conceded.

"And what, you get together and watch these shows?"

Felicity grinned. "Yep, it's our very own date night. In fact I've got a back log of the last couple of weeks recorded. We've just been too busy to find a clear night to catch up."

"I see."

Diggle looked at him oddly. "Are you alright, Oliver?"

"Of course I am," said Oliver evenly, even as his insides turned over in turmoil. "Why do you ask?"

"Because you look like you're trying to snap that knife in two."

Oliver followed Diggle's pointed look and noted in surprise that he did have a death grip on the butter knife he didn't even remember picking up. It was just hearing that Diggle and Felicity were doing things together behind his back had caused feelings of absolute rage. Oliver gave a little shake of his head, instantly realizing how ridiculous that thought was. They weren't doing anything behind his back and they were perfectly free to spend their down time anyway they pleased, and that included watching some TV together. Oliver forced himself to let go of the knife, needing to change the subject. "Okay, breakfast is over, time for us to get back to work."

"I've got an ID on Cruella DeVil," said Felicity, referencing the woman with the two toned hair. "But the info on the USB stick is going to take me longer. There is some seriously heavy duty firewalls built around the information stored on that thing. I created a decryption worm and loaded it into the program last night. Hopefully it'll break the encryption soon." Felicity looked over at her lap top expectantly and then when nothing happened she ruefully wrinkled her nose. "If this was a movie, the worm would have opened the program just then." She sighed. "Real life has much less convenient editing."

"Just tell me what you've got so far, Felicity," said Oliver. "I feel like we need to get moving on this quickly. We've upset their operation, I want to keep the momentum moving on that, if we can."

"Of course," said Felicity, standing up and clearing all three of their plates. "But I don't think you're going to like what you hear."

Oliver sighed heavily and rubbed his aching temples. "Why should today be any different from all the rest," he said morosely.

"Nice pep talk from the team captain," said Diggle wryly. "A real winner."

"You telling me you're not worried about what was going on in that warehouse and what that might mean for Starling City down the line if we don't put a stop to it?" When Diggle didn't immediately answer, Oliver gave him a pointed look. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

Oliver just needed to get this show on the road. He hated inertia, particularly when he knew the bad guys were using that time to regroup. They needed to get on top of this latest threat and they needed to do it now.

**A/N****: Just a by the by as I post this but I'm actually watching the first episode of Doctor Who with the new Doctor – Peter Capaldi. It's a great first debut by the new Doc. I'm a huge fan girl of the show, always have been and couldn't resist putting a little nod to the legendary show in this chapter. Hank's not happy but hey, what's the worst he can do? Actually, a surprising amount of damage if he puts his mind to it but let's not dwell, eh? **

**Hope to see you in the next chapter where more elements of this drama will be relieved… and PS that wasn't the gratuitous naked scene with Oliver I was talking about writing. That's way ahead… something to look forward to. ;) **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N****: Hi guys, I'm doing the intro today because Hank is currently doing a little personal grooming… at least that is what he tells me he's doing. All I know is that he's been licking his genitals for quite a while now… I'm not sure at what length of time personal hygiene slips into getting your freak on but I have a feeling Hank is edging towards that line at a rapid rate. **

**Seems like quite a few of you enjoyed the last chapter and Oliver's battle with his t-shirt. They can be tricky things those t-shirts, you never know when they're going to pull a fast one on you. Fortunately Felicity was there to save the day. Yay Felicity! A few of you are doing well at guessing where all this might be heading and these next couple of chapters are all going to be a lot of exposition to clarify that direction. Hope they're not too boring for you. **

**Okay, it's getting late here, I should really toddle off to bed and leave Hank to it. Now that he's worked out he can, how shall I put it, lie affectionately in his own lap, I'm probably not going to see him for days… maybe longer. I've contemplated warning him about the hairy palms thing but it feels like a moot point when talking to a monkey. That doesn't seem like much of an incentive to stop if you're already covered in hair. **

**Anyways, here is the next chapter. Your enthusiasm for the last chapter had me wanting to post it sooner rather than later, so this chapter is all because of you guys. :D **

**Hope you enjoy…**

**CHAPTER FIVE**

Oliver took a seat on the couch next to Felicity just as Diggle's cell phone rang. He quickly answered it. "Oh hey, give me a minute." Diggle put his hand over the mouthpiece. "It's my nephew, I'm going to take it outside. Start without me, Felicity's already filled me in on what she's got so far."

"She has?" asked Oliver in surprise, looking at Felicity as Diggle disappeared out into the hallway, closing the front door behind him.

"You slept past ten o'clock," said Felicity simply. "Diggle arrived at eight. We had some time on our hands but I can bring you up to speed now."

"Okay." Oliver sat on the couch next to Felicity and watched as she tapped away at the keyboard of her laptop.

"By the way, Diggle retrieved your bow." Felicity grimaced. "I think it may have to be put out to pasture but at least it isn't in the hands of the police, which it very nearly was."

"Good," said Oliver in relief. "That last thing I needed was Detective Lance getting his hands on that."

"Agreed," said Felicity, "we've got enough problems to deal with as it is. While the decryption worm is running, I've been doing some research on the woman from the video tape. Her name is Lyla Coates," she informed him. "Professor Lyla Coates to be exact." Felicity brought up an image of a brunette with a streak of white in her hair, dressed in a black suit. "And she's got quite the interesting CV."

Oliver leaned in closer to Felicity as she pulled up more information on the erstwhile Professor Coates. Their arms, sides and thighs were touching as they sat together, looking at the laptop screen together. That fragrance of hers was back in Oliver's nostrils and the warmth of Felicity's body was creeping its way through his, making the pounding in his head stop. In fact, the aching in the rest of his body was dissipating as well. Oliver felt a tranquil haze descend of him as he listened to Felicity give a rundown on the history of Lyla Coates. Looks like he really had needed breakfast after all. Oliver felt much better than when he did when he first woke up.

"So, after graduating from Frances' premier university, École Normale Superieure University in Paris, as a chemical engineer, top of her class, no less, Lyla was snapped up by a big French research company, but then she moved onto the British military about six years later. I'm having trouble accessing everything she was working on because, not unsurprisingly, it's all classified but I have a feeling we're not going to like what we find. It's going to take me a little while to crack the military firewalls but when I do – oh!" Felicity had turned to talk to him but Oliver had his face so close to hers that when she did, she bumped her nose against his chin. Felicity made a face and rubbed her nose. "Ah, Oliver, do you think you could move a little?"

On instinct Oliver moved even closer, basically trapping Felicity against the arm of the sofa and his body.

Felicity arched an eyebrow at him. "I was kinda thinking the other way."

Oliver had a moment of clarity. Of course she meant the other way, what was he doing? Even though he realized they were sitting far too closely and he was in fact even crushing her a little, Oliver still felt himself oddly reluctant to move away. With a great effort of will he moved a little bit away from her so there was a small space between them. "Sorry," he apologized a little sheepishly.

"It's okay," said Felicity, casting him a vaguely confused sideways look. "Anyways, she was with the military for just over ten years and then suddenly nothing, she was just gone."

"How do you mean?"

"I mean one day she was working for the military in some kind of top secret research project and then she wasn't." Felicity tapped away on the computer again. "After that she went off the grid for about five years and then she pops up again working for an Algernon Forbes-Hamilton. He's a British expat living over here for the last twenty years."

"Never heard of him."

"Mr. Forbes-Hamilton is the money behind Defense One Industries."

Oliver knew that company. "They're one of the world's largest suppliers of weaponry to the military, in this country and a lot of others." His jaw hardened. "And they've got a reputation for not being particularly discerning when it comes to who they'll sell to."

"I know," sighed Felicity. "And with Coates' background it kinda feels like the Grinch and Scrooge teaming up to take down Christmas." She wrinkled her nose. "Not that I'm all that into Christmas." Felicity cocked her head. "That's kind of a Jewish thing."

"So," said Oliver slowly, processing all of this, "we've got a chemical engineer teaming up with an arms dealer with deep pockets. What are we thinking here? Some kind of knew chemical warfare tech?"

"That would be my best guess," agreed Felicity. "And it has something to do with that gas but we won't know for sure until I crack the firewall protecting the information."

"How about the dog tags?"

"That I've got an answers for," said Felicity. She pressed another key on the lap top and brought up a picture of the man Oliver had fought and killed. "Sergeant Thomas Albert Finlay Jr. He was a Marine, served two tours in Afghanistan and then went back for a third tour and his military records show that a convoy he was part of was attacked and was killed in 2013. He has a wife and twin boys." Felicity made a regretful face. "I mean, had a wife and twin boys." She looked at Oliver intently when he didn't comment. "It wasn't your fault, Oliver. You did what you had to do. Whatever they did to Sergeant Finlay, I don't think he was anyone that his wife and children would have recognized anyway."

Oliver stared at the picture of the Marine in full dress uniform, looking like he was proud to be wearing the uniform and serving his country. A soft hand touched his cheek, the cheek where there was a muscle ticking away wildly.

"Oliver, you can't blame yourself. If there is justice to be had for the Sergeant, we're the best ones to get it for him. That's the way we can help him and his family now."

Oliver turned his head and looked at Felicity, finding solace in her words. He nodded. "I want that."

Diggle walked back into the room, pocketing his cell phone. "All caught up?"

"Yes," said Oliver, "now we just have to wait on getting into those files to see what we're really up against." He looked at Felicity. "In the meantime, do you think you can track down where Coates might be? Her set up seemed pretty involved. Something tells me she isn't going to skip town too quickly. I think the Hood needs to pay her a visit tonight."

"The Hood may have to reconsider the time frame on that," noted Felicity.

Oliver frowned. "Why?"

Felicity gave him a pointed look. "Because today is your sister's twentieth birthday and she's having that big party in town."

Oliver let out a frustrated breath, slumping back against the sofa. "Thea, of course. How could I forget that?"

"You had a big night last night, what with the dying and all," said Felicity wryly. "But Oliver, you can't blow off her party. It's the first one since your Mom died and birthdays are about family and you're all she has left now. It would crush her if you weren't there, even if she'd never admit such a thing."

Oliver rubbed his face tiredly. "I know." He nodded. "Of course I'll be going. I just need to make sure we don't lose any advantage we might have over this Coates' situation."

"We won't," Felicity promised him. "But you need to go home and get yourself cleaned up and bring a suit back to the lair. By then I might have more information on the not so good Professor."

With a plan of attack decided, Diggle drove Oliver back to his house and Felicity promised to meet them at the Foundry when they were done. Oliver showered and changed clothes, also collecting a suit and tie for Thea's party that night. No one was home so he didn't have a chance to wish Thea happy birthday but he figured he'd be able to do that at the party that night. In the end it was nearly three hours before they were back at the Foundry and waiting on Felicity.

"You okay?"

Oliver tried to focus on Diggle as he leant against the computer desk. "Yeah," he grunted.

"You're sweating… a lot."

Oliver ran his hand over his forehead which was indeed sweaty and grimaced. "I guess I've felt better," he muttered. "My head is killing me and every muscle in my body feels like it's on fire."

Diggle grimaced. "That damn gas. We need to find out what the hell it's designed for."

"I'll just sweat it out," said Oliver dismissively.

"Assuming that is even possible with what they dosed that stuff up with."

"Way to get your Downer on Debbie," said Oliver flatly. He glanced over at the stairs. "Shouldn't Felicity be here by now? You rang her when we left my house, didn't you?"

"I did, she shouldn't be far away."

"I'm going to call her again." Oliver reached for his phone.

Diggle put a hand on his arm. "There's no need. She'll be here soon."

The pounding in Oliver's head was getting worse and he glared at Diggle. "Why don't you want me to call her?"

Diggle shrugged. "Because there is no need."

"Or maybe you don't want me talking to Felicity," Oliver snapped.

Diggle looked a little taken aback. "Why wouldn't I want that?"

Oliver straightened up and put his face in Diggle's. "You tell me," he bit out.

"What am I meant to be telling you?" asked Diggle in consternation.

"I don't know, you're the one going on secrets dates with Felicity all of a sudden." Oliver could feel the pulse in his forehead beginning to throb. "Maybe you don't want any competition?"

Diggle was looking at him in concern. "Competition? What competition? Is this about Felicity and me watching some TV together?"

"I told you about how I was conflicted about Felicity and the whole time you were just trying to undermine me with her!" Oliver could feel his anger building, making his stomach clench, his hands ball into fists.

Diggle eyes went wide. "Where the hell is this coming from? What are you talking about?"

The door above their heads clanged noisily and Felicity was suddenly at the top of the stairs. "Sorry I'm late," she said, a little out of breath as she trotted down the stairs, her lap top open in front of her, "but I've been sitting in my car the last half hour because I've got a good news, bad news situation."

Oliver stepped back away from Diggle, feeling relief flood his body at seeing her. The anger immediately dissipated from his body as she got to the bottom of the stairs and joined them. "Felicity," he said, breaking into a smile.

"Hi," said Felicity and then looked between Oliver and a still frowning Diggle. "Have I missed something?"

Diggle folded his arms in front of his chest. "I think we both have," he said flatly, eyeing Oliver warily.

Oliver's irritation with Diggle was gone as quickly as it had started. Maybe it had something to do with the fact his head had finally stopped trying to pound its way out of his skull. "What's the good news?"

"My decryption worm came through," said Felicity happily. "Not for the military stuff, that one is still going but I've cracked Professor Coates' code and I've been reading that in the car." She wrinkled her nose. "Aanndd that is where the bad news comes in." Felicity walked over and set the lap top down, letting them see the multiple files she had up on the screen. "Coates is heading up a project which goes by the name Sirène. It's French for Siren. She's developing this gas which is basically about mind control. Her experiments are all about trying to cause a chemical reaction in people, in particular soldiers, that will make them more susceptible to suggestions and also make them focus on one person to the exclusion of anyone else. So, you'd like have a commanding officer that had mindless obedience from all of the men under his charge. The theory being it'd make for a tighter, easier to control team when you don't have that whole pesky free will thing going on."

Diggle and Oliver leaned over Felicity's shoulder and read the files for themselves as she settled in at her computer desk.

Oliver's jaw hardened. "And they were setting up the deaths of serving soldiers and then using them in their experiments," he said grimly. "There has to be at least fifty men on this list."

"And you see how about forty odd of them their names are in red?" said Felicity unhappily. "They're the ones who haven't survived the process with XR-320. That's what Coates has called the gas." She turned her head and looked up at Oliver, worry etched all over her face. "Oliver, you took a huge, uncontrolled dose of that gas. Normally Professor Coates would set herself up as the one all the men answered to, using her own DNA to focus their attention on her."

"It's a type of imprinting," said Diggle slowly, still reading all the information on the screen. "Like with ducklings and the first thing they see they assume that is their mother and follow them unquestioningly. She's imprinted herself on these men and separation from her creates feelings of anxiety and stress."

"What if she's done the same thing to you, Oliver?" fretted Felicity. "She was there when you were gassed. What if you're next in the long line of men she is controlling?"

"That isn't going to happen," said Oliver quickly. "I think I'd know if someone was controlling me."

Felicity still looked worried. "We can't know that for sure, not at this point."

"I don't think it's Coates that has imprinted herself on Oliver," said Diggle seriously.

Felicity let out a sigh of relief. "You don't?"

"Of course she hasn't," said Oliver stubbornly, not sure why they were even talking about this.

"I think it's you, Felicity," continued on Diggle, without missing a beat.

"Me what?" asked Felicity blankly.

"I think you're the one who has been imprinted on Oliver."

Felicity's eyes went wide and she and Oliver exchanged shocked looks. "Me?" She shook her head. "That's insane."

"Completely insane," agreed Oliver readily.

"Is it?" asked Diggle seriously. "I think you should hear me out."

Oliver wanted to dismiss Diggle's wild claim out of hand but there was something in the other man's expression which had him hesitating, even though he knew there was no way what the other man was saying could be true. No way.

**A/N****: So, do you think Diggle is onto something or is Oliver right and he's perfectly fine? If Oliver's right then this is going to be quite a short fic… so, there is that. Lol Or maybe something else is going on again and this was all a dream and Oliver is still unconscious? Ahh… the possibilities. :D **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N****: Hi guys, so happy you've joined me for the next chapter. **

**It seems like most of you know where this is heading and are on board – yay, that makes it so much less complicated then me sending around people to your individual houses to 'convince' you of the awesome potential of this story line. And by convince I mean generalized stand over tactics which may or may not involve a horde (yes, that is the correct collective noun) of hamsters and an industrial size tub of Vaseline. Let's just say it's better for everyone involved that you're all on board with the direction of this s/l… particularly for the hamsters. **

**Hank is taking a mental health day today, so it's just me running the show. The last mental health day Hank had actually ended up being a two week bender where he was eventually found unconscious and buck naked in a Toys R Us store in Las Vegas in the stuffed animal section. I'm not saying anything untoward happened with Hank and a selection of the stuffed animals… but I am saying the owners did make a pretty big bonfire with a lot of Tickle Me Elmos and Furbies due to quote "public health hygiene concerns" unquote. **

**Anyways, I'm off to work to earn my living (damn it, why won't someone just pay me to sit around and write all day?! It's so unfair.) Hope you enjoy this chapter because Oliver sure won't. We have confirmation of what is going on with him, so we'll see how that turns out, eh? **

**Toodles… **

**CHAPTER SIX**

Diggle's jaw hardened as he didn't back down from his hypothesis, despite the looks the other two were giving him. "You said that she exposed the test subjects to her DNA and these notes say it provided some kind of chemical binding complex where the men would become fixated on her and follow her every command, right?"

"Diggle, I can promise you, Oliver and I haven't shared any DNA," said Felicity, blushing even as she said that.

"But you have," he argued. "You gave Oliver mouth to mouth just after he came out of the gas. There is no way you two didn't mix saliva while you were saving his life and saliva has DNA in it. Certainly enough to create the bonding effect the gas was meant for."

"That's crazy," said Oliver hotly. "I'm not bonded to Felicity."

Diggle shrugged. "Imprinted then, call it what you want but all I know is that you were ready to have an aneurysm when Felicity didn't show up right away."

Oliver scowled. "I was just worried something might have happened to her, that's all."

"You just about took my head off when I talked about her," noted Diggle. He looked at Felicity. "The report says right here that the gas causes elevated states of aggression and paranoia in the test subjects."

Felicity was looking worried now. "Ah… yeah, it does." She gave Oliver a wary look. "You don't think what Diggle is saying could be true, do you?"

"Of course not," said Oliver sharply. "I'm in complete control of myself."

"We should test that theory out," said Diggle simply.

"Fine," said Oliver defiantly. "How?"

Felicity hesitated and then spoke up. "Coates' notes said she relied on the test subjects feeling increasingly unwell the longer they were away from her. The theory being is that they'd always return to her or the person they'd been bonded to, no matter the circumstances because they were physically compelled to be around that person. If we monitor your vitals and I leave, we can see if that has any effect on you." Felicity looked a little uncertain. "How does that sound?"

"Perfectly doable," said Oliver without hesitation. "Hook me up."

"If you just put the heart monitor watch back on, I think that will be enough," said Felicity. She walked over and handed the watch to him. "Then I'll just go outside for a bit."

"I think you should leave the building," said Diggle. "Get in your car and drive."

"Felicity doesn't have to do that," protested Oliver. "She can just wait upstairs, out of sight."

Diggle arched an eyebrow at him. "Why? Would that bother you that she was more than a few feet away?"

"Of course not," said Oliver hastily. "I just didn't want to put Felicity out."

"It's no trouble, particularly if we can prove this theory one way or the other," chimed in Felicity. "I've got some errands to run anyways. Two birds, one stone. How long do you want me to go for?"

"Let's leave it open ended," suggested Diggle.

Oliver didn't like the sound of that but he couldn't exactly say that because Diggle would take it as more proof that he and his crazy theory was right. And there was no way he was.

"Okay, see you in a bit," said Felicity, heading up the stairs.

"Or not," offered up Diggle, looking over at Oliver. "We'll see."

Oliver shrugged. "Not a problem for me."

"Let's hope not."

The door closed heavily behind Felicity as Diggle turned to face him. "Alone at last," he said wryly.

"You know this is stupid, right?" Oliver challenged him. "I'm not fixated on Felicity."

"I hope not," said Diggle, "because from what we've seen so far, good old Professor Coates doesn't seem to have the blend quite right on this gas yet. There are a lot of deceased test subjects in her study and I'm not going to lie, that worries me."

"I don't think the gas has had any real effect on me," protested Oliver. "I've got a really high metabolism. I think I process toxins a lot faster than most people. I've been poisoned a lot, Digg, and I keep walking away from the experience."

"And let's cross our fingers that trend continues."

"It will." Oliver looked around them. "I think I'll do some training, kill some time."

Diggle shook his head. "You can't. Training will elevate your heart rate and we need to keep it steady to make sure it doesn't skew our testing."

Oliver let out a frustrated breath. "So, what am I meant to do then, just sit around, twiddling my thumbs?"

"The twiddling is optional but yes, you're to stay at rest so we can be sure that there are no external influences contributing to any changes in your vitals."

"This is so stupid," complained Oliver.

"I'd rather be safe than sorry about this thing," said Diggle, not relenting.

Oliver knew that Diggle was worrying over nothing but there was only one way to prove it to him. So, the two men sat there, waiting. After about half an hour, Oliver's left leg began to jiggle up and down. Diggle eyed his agitated leg suspiciously and Oliver immediately stopped. "I'm bored," said Oliver sharply. "I'm not a sit around and do nothing kind of guy."

"Take it easy," said Diggle. "Doing nothing for a couple of hours isn't going to stop the earth rotating on its axis."

"We're wasting time," said Oliver in irritation. "We could be using this time to try and track down this Coates woman."

"Pretty sure that is what Felicity is doing now," said Diggle calmly. "We'd only get in her way."

"Oh right, because you and Felicity are so close you know what she's doing without even asking," said Oliver bitterly.

"Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?" asked Diggle innocently.

"No," snapped Oliver, "I just don't get why you think you're a Felicity expert all of a sudden."

"I know what I know."

Oliver rolled his eyes. "What's that suppose to mean?"

"It means what it means."

"Are you deliberately trying to be annoying?"

Diggle grabbed Oliver's wrist and looked at the blood pressure and pulse rate read out. "Your pulse is up and so is your BP."

"That's because you're intentionally baiting me and being as annoying as hell," bit out Oliver, glaring at him.

"I'm really not," said Diggle mildly. "You just seem to have a short fuse all of a sudden."

"What I've got is a headache," muttered Oliver, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Did you have the headache when Felicity was here?"

"It comes and goes," said Oliver defensively. "That doesn't have anything to do with Felicity."

"Mm," said Diggle, sounding less than convinced.

The minutes ticked away and Oliver was beginning to feel like a caged animal. The air around suddenly felt as thick as molasses and each breath seemed to clog his lungs and make his next inhalation increasingly painful. Oliver abruptly stood up, unable to sit still any longer. He began to pace up and down the length of the room, trying to clear his head.

Diggle looked up from where he'd been reading through the Project Sirène files more carefully. "You okay?"

"Yes," he said tersely. "Are we done with this stupid experiment yet? How much more time are we going to waste?"

Diggle looked down at his watch. "It's just gone over an hour and a half." He looked Oliver over. "And you don't look so great."

Oliver knew he was sweating profusely. The salt laden sweat was running down his forehead and stinging his eyes, forcing him to blink rapidly. "It's the after effects of the gas, nothing else," insisted Oliver stubbornly. "I'd be like this regardless of whether Felicity was here or not." He glanced up at the stairs, as though just saying Felicity's name would make her suddenly appear. Oliver felt like had hadn't seen her for days all of a sudden but he refused to believe that had anything to do with the gas. It was just that he was used to the three of them working on things together, that was why he was feeling her absence so acutely. At least, that was what he was telling himself.

"She's not coming back any time soon," Diggle warned him.

That sounded like a threat to Oliver and he felt a surge of anger. "This whole experiment is flawed," he snapped.

"Try and stay calm, Oliver."

Diggle's unrelenting unruffled composure was getting on Oliver's last nerve. "Felicity and I were apart for nearly four hours earlier and nothing happened."

"You weren't in great shape by the end of the four hours," noted Diggle. "In fact, you were about how you are now."

"And that's my point," said Oliver tightly. "My condition is unrelated to Felicity because we were apart for four hours and I was feeling like this. It hasn't even been two hours this time and I'm the same. It's not consistent."

"I've been reading more on this XR-320 from Coates' notes," countered Diggle, "and from what I can tell, it's completely consistent with her findings. She recorded that as the toxin worked its way through the subject's system there was an exponential increase in the cause and effect between her and the subjects."

Oliver scowled at him, his aching brain not actually able to unjumble all of those words to make sense. "Can you say that in English?"

"The longer the toxin is in your system, the more of an effect it has on you," simplified Diggle. "It's very likely that your ability to withstand separation from Felicity is reducing over time."

"That isn't what this is," ground out Oliver, resuming his pacing.

Diggle didn't answer but he looked worried. Twenty minutes later Oliver's stomach was cramping so badly he felt like he was going to throw up. The monitor on his wrist was beeping away at him noisily and Oliver felt like his head was ready to explode. His legs suddenly gave way, no longer able to function and he buckled to the ground, hands catching him before he face planted onto the ground.

"Oliver!" Diggle was by his side immediately.

"I-I'm okay," rasped Oliver but he really wasn't. His heart felt like it was about to beat its way out of his chest. Each intake of air was like breathing fire and Oliver couldn't seem to fill his lungs, no matter how hard he tried. The wrist monitor was screaming at him now and Oliver ripped it from his arm, unable to stand the sound any longer.

"I'm calling Felicity," said Diggle urgently. He reached into his coat pocket and quickly dialed her number. "Felicity, it's me. You need to get back here right now." Diggle hung up and put Oliver's arm over his shoulder. "Come on, we'll get you lying down."

Oliver's legs refused to carry his own weight and Diggle was forced to do all the lifting, half carrying, half dragging Oliver to the table and lying him down. Oliver lay on the bed, trying to drag air into his lungs but it was never enough. He couldn't breathe. Every muscle in his body felt like it was knotted into a hundred balls. Oliver barely registered Diggle pushing up his t-shirt and attaching electrode pads to his chest.

Diggle was reading the monitor. "Your BP is 195 on 128." He grimaced. "That's definite heart attack or stroke territory." He grabbed for the trolley with the defibrillator on it and wheeled it closer to the bed, ready if he should need it.

"D-Diggle," gasped Oliver in distress, feeling the veins bulging out of his neck as his body threatened to shut down on him.

Diggle put his hands on Oliver's shoulders, trying to get Oliver to stop thrashing about so much. "Just try and breathe," he said urgently.

"C-can't," gasped Oliver, black spots starting to appear before his eyes.

"I'm here, I'm here!" Felicity's panicked voice came from above them. She ran down the stairs. "What's happening?" She took one look at the state Oliver was in and at the monitor and blanched. "That can't be right," she said in dismay. "The leads mustn't be on properly." Felicity put her hand to Oliver's chest to ensure the monitoring pads were attached securely to him and Oliver's hand snapped out and grabbed hers.

"Felicity," he managed to rasp, eyes locking with hers. His hand convulsed around hers as another spasm racked his body.

"Diggle, this isn't working," said Felicity in distress. "Oliver needs a hospital. His heart is going to explode if this keeps up!"

"No!" bit out Oliver through clenched teeth. "No-no hospital."

"The guy dying on the table doesn't get a vote!" said Felicity hotly. She looked over her shoulder at Diggle. "Help me carry him."

Diggle's eyes were on the monitor. "Wait, look."

Felicity twisted her head around more to see what Diggle was looking at.

"His blood pressure is dropping."

Oliver had been cold all over but Felicity's hand in his felt impossibly warm and that warmth was working its way through Oliver's entire body. He held onto her hand for dear life, like it was the only thing keeping him from dissolving into a million pieces.

Felicity turned her attention back to Oliver, her eyes full of worry even as she tried to comfort him. "It's okay," she said hastily, stroking his face with her free hand, "you're okay."

Without letting go of her hand, he grabbed Felicity's elbow with his other hand and pulled her closer to him. He needed her closer to him. "F-Felicity," he stammered, feeling some of his muscles finally uncoil.

She held his gaze, eyes full of anxiety. "Just breathe and don't die. Please don't die."

"BP still dropping," announced Diggle. "It's working."

Oliver felt his heart rate slowing down and the tension leaving his body. He could catch his breath now, his vision beginning to clear.

Felicity was stroking his face, soft skin a cool balm against his overheated face. "Oh God, you're so sweaty. There can't be any fluid left in your body." She looked over at Diggle. "He'll be dehydrated. We should set up an IV." Felicity went to move away to grab what she needed.

"No!" said Oliver forcefully, refusing to let go of her hand. The thought of Felicity not being right there sent him into a panic. "Don't leave me!"

"I'm not leaving you," said Felicity quickly. "I promise. I'm right here."

Oliver saw Diggle and Felicity exchange worried looks and he closed his eyes and groaned. Diggle had been right. Oliver could feel himself feeling more and more normal with every second Felicity was by his side. He hadn't wanted it to be true, needed it not to be true but the thought of Felicity leaving him now shut down every capacity Oliver had for any kind of thought. A few more minutes ticked by and his breathing came back under control and Oliver felt the strength returning to his body. He went to sit up.

"Careful," said Felicity anxiously.

Oliver looked over at the monitor. "110 on 65," he observed shakily, "pretty much normal for me. I'm fine." His gaze lingered on a still distraught looking Felicity. "I'm fine," he repeated unevenly. Oliver could think clearly again but the only trouble was, he didn't like what he was thinking.

"If only that was true," said Diggle darkly. "I think we all need to talk. We've got a serious situation on our hands here."

Oliver closed his eyes and released a frustrated breath. He knew Diggle was right but a part of him still wished that they were getting this wrong. That Felicity wasn't caught up in all of this in the worst possible way. He didn't know what this revelation meant for either one of them but Oliver had a sinking feeling it wasn't going to be anything good.

**A/N****: And there we have it, folks, Oliver is addicted to Felicity. What a position to be in, eh? Plenty of chances for feelings to come out, up close and personal moments and just generalized shenanigans from this kind of premise. Should be a good time… well, for us that is, Olicity are going to be having a tough time of it, but as long as they're together, it's all good from my POV. ;) Hope you'll join me for all the fun. Oh, and don't forget, we're going to a party, so make sure you get all gussied up for that, a Queen party is always worth the price of admission. ;) **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N****: And we're back! Speaking of back, Hank has returned, sporting a new tattoo (just how many unicorn tattoos does one monkey need anyways?!) and what I suspect is a pretty decent dose of the clap. Hank claims his man monkey bits are meant to itch and ooze like that but I have my doubts. So, our little family is complete again… not that I think Alfonoso Del Vecchio missed Hank that much. There isn't a lot of love lost between those two but that story is too long to tell today – another time perhaps. **

**Now, this chapter, basically I got creative and gave Felicity a bit of a back story. Of course, they're finally going to get around to it in Season 3 and I know it'll annoy me when my back story doesn't match up with Felicity's on the show but oh well, that is how my cookie crumbles I suppose. I'm going to do that a bit with a few of the characters in this story, back filling things about their lives. I like to get to know characters better and sometimes you just have to do these things yourself if the show is too slow getting around to it. ;) **

**So, here we go…**

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

Felicity loaded the latest sample of Oliver's blood into the analyzer and pressed start. She snuck a glance over at Oliver as he sat talking to Diggle, an IV line in his arm, rehydrating him. It was amazing. Twenty minutes ago she'd returned to the lair to find Oliver basically at death's door. It had been terrifying. Now, he was walking around like nothing had happened. Felicity didn't even want to think what might have happened to Oliver if she hadn't been already pulling up at the Foundry when Diggle had rung. She'd thought the worst of it was over when she'd got Oliver breathing again last night but now Felicity was starting to realize that they were possibly at the beginning of a very tough road. The whole thing boggled her mind. Oliver Queen needed her around to survive. It sounded crazy to even think those words. If Felicity was being honest with herself, she'd have to admit she'd had those occasional day dreams where she was the center of Oliver's world, wondering what it would be like. To be confronted with a literal interpretation of those words was something else entirely however.

"IV is through," announced Diggle, removing the needle from Oliver's arm.

Felicity turned in her chair and looked at Oliver. "How are you feeling?"

"Great," said Oliver easily. "Never better." He stood up and pressed a piece of gauze to his arm, bending his elbow up to keep it in place.

"If only that were true," said Diggle wryly. "Okay, game plan time. We need to figure this out."

"We need to find this Lyla Coates," said Oliver determinedly. "If there is some kind of antidote or neutralizing agent for this toxin, then she'll be the one who has it." He shook his head. "The whole project seems pointless to me anyways. What's the benefit of having soldiers that have to keep their handlers in view at all times or their hearts will explode?"

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "That wasn't the intent of the project. From Coates' notes, she was aiming for regulating how long the soldiers could survive without having negative effects of being apart from their leader. It looked like she was looking for it to be around a day or two from her trials but ultimately being able to control exactly how long they wanted it to be for." She grimaced. "Unfortunately when you were gassed there wasn't even an attempt to regulate how much of the XR-320 was given to you. That's why your tolerance times are so much less than what would be the practicably ideal." Felicity folded her arms in front of herself. "Not that any of this could be called ideal."

"I see your point," conceded Oliver.

"And I might have a lead on finding our black widow," said Felicity. "When I went out before, I went to see my arm's dealer guy, Eugene."

Oliver's jaw hardened. "I hate it so much that you have an arm's dealer guy."

"Yeah, well, just be thankful I do because he'd heard whispers that this Forbes-Hamilton guy was in town. He's staying at the Plaza, doing some business from his hotel room under the name of Heston Eastwood." She rolled her eyes. "I guess he's a big movie buff for gunslingers, or at least, actors who've played gunslingers. Pretty hokey if you ask me."

"I guess we know who is getting a visit from the Hood tonight," said Oliver grimly.

"Yeah, no one," said Diggle. He fixed Oliver with a determined look. "If you go anywhere, you have to take Felicity with you."

Felicity raised her hand. "Can we not swing through a window or anything and make the big entrance?" she requested. "I'm not a fan and I never stick the landings."

"I wouldn't take you with me, Felicity," said Oliver sharply. "It would take me less than an hour to scare the crap out of this guy and get the information we need. That's doable."

"For now," countered Diggle. "We don't know the speed this thing might progress at. It may have peaked or it may be only going to get worse. We just don't know. We can't take that kind of risk. And besides, you've got a birthday party to go to."

Oliver made a frustrated grunt of acknowledgement.

"I'll go and pay Mr. Eastwood a visit and suggest it'd be in his best interests to help us out as much as he can." Diggle looked between the two of them. "You two go to that birthday party and try and have some fun. Wish Thea a happy birthday for me."

Oliver looked like he wanted to argue but there really wasn't any point. "I'm going for a shower," he said tersely and then seemed to make a concentrated effort to take the annoyance out of his voice as he addressed Felicity. "I'll get dress for the party and then I can take you back to your place to do the same, okay?" He glanced at his watch. "We've only got a couple of hours before it starts."

"Okay," said Felicity as she watched him head off to the shower room.

"How are you feeling?" asked Diggle solicitously after Oliver was gone.

"Oh you know, another day on the job at Team Arrow," said Felicity with feigned brightness. "What isn't there to love?"

Diggle tilted his head and gave her a pointed look. "Felicity."

She groaned. "I've roofied Oliver Queen, Dig. How am I meant to feel about that?"

"You haven't roofied him," protested Diggle. He grimaced. "Not intentionally, anyways. This isn't your fault."

"If we hadn't been out there testing the exoskeleton Oliver would never have ended up inside that warehouse," said Felicity unhappily.

"There is no point in going down that road," said Diggle firmly. "If Oliver hadn't appointed himself as protector of Starling City, this wouldn't have happened either."

Felicity sat back in her seat and gnawed on her thumbnail. "This is bad, isn't it?"

"It's not great," conceded Diggle.

"Oliver can't live without me," said Felicity unsteadily, "but not in the amazing, romantic way. It's more in the horrifying, permanently psychologically damaging way." Felicity rolled her eyes. "That is so my luck." She bit her bottom lip. "Diggle, I'm really scared for him. We don't know where this is going but there are a lot of dead test subjects associated with Project Sirène and that Marine Oliver had to kill wasn't exactly a poster child for all of this having a happy ending."

Diggle put a hand on her shoulder. "Felicity, we're going to figure this out. We just have to work as a team on this one and we're not too bad at that."

Felicity drew in a fortifying breath. "No, we're not," she said, forcing herself not to think of every horrible scenario which could play out before this was over. "Oliver is doing fine right now—"

"And he'll continue to be fine if you're nearby," agreed Diggle. "You just have to keep him calm and away from stressful situations and then we can work on finding a cure for this thing."

Felicity put a brave smile on her face. "I can do that." She had to. Felicity really didn't want to see Oliver in the state he'd been in when she'd first returned to the lair ever again.

"Just be yourself around him," encouraged Diggle. "If Oliver knows you're stressed that will stress him too."

"Just me and the cucumber, doing our thing." She pulled a face. "I mean being cool," said Felicity hastily. "I don't do anything else with cucumbers… well, I eat them but you know, nothing else weird with them."

Diggle smiled. "You can stop talking now, Felicity."

She grabbed his hand. "Thank you," she said in relief.

"You've got this," said Diggle encouragingly. "I'm going to track down this Forbes-Hamilton guy and then we'll get him to tell us where Professor Coates is. She's our best chance to find some kind of antidote for Oliver's poisoning."

"And in the meantime I get to go to a party," said Felicity, valiantly keeping a smile on her face. "Where's the downside in that?" She really hoped there wasn't going to be an answer to that question at some point that evening.

**#**

Oliver watched Felicity gathered up her clothes for the evening as he stood in her bedroom with her.

"I won't be long," she told him as she hurried on through to the bathroom.

"No rush," said Oliver as he watched her close the door behind her. He felt a little flutter of anxiety as the door created a barrier between them but he pushed it to one side, ignoring the sensation. In an effort to distract himself, Oliver started to look around Felicity's bedroom as he heard the shower begin to run. Things had been a little strained in the car ride over to her house and Oliver didn't want that. He knew it was a weird situation and they were dealing the best they could. Oliver just wanted things to go back to normal between them but he'd be lying if he said he was afraid that they might have to find a new kind of normal after all of this was over.

Oliver scanned the room, taking in the way Felicity had gathered together eclectic bits and pieces into the small room and organized them with a careless order which seemed so her. He stopped in front of a cork board which had dozens of postcards pinned to it. Oliver looked at each one in turn. "What's with the postcards?" he called out to her.

"My Mom moved us around a lot, looking for work, escaping her latest romantic disaster or skipping out on bills she couldn't afford to pay," called back Felicity over the noise of the shower. "She'd call them adventures but usually is was us packing up everything we owned into the Princess and hitting the road."

"The Princess?"

"Also known as a 1975 Chevrolet. Mom liked to give names to inanimate objects. Not that a car is exactly inanimate I guess. Although the Princess could be temperamental at times and did a good imitation of being inanimate at the most inconvenient times."

Oliver realized he really didn't know much about Felicity's life before he met her. "How old were you?"

"It was basically my life for as long as I could remember until I was eighteen and escaped to college."

Oliver tried to imagine a young Felicity growing up in such a shambolic world. It gave him a fresh level of appreciation about the woman she'd become. She really was remarkable. "And the postcards?"

"We'd always stop at all the different roadside attractions we'd come across and I'd get a postcard. It kind of became this family tradition. Well, our version of it anyways."

Oliver looked at the postcards. "The largest ball of stamps."

"Oh yeah, it was a big ball of stamps alright, that was in Boys Town, Nebraska."

"The giant horseshoe crab, Blanchester, Ohio."

"I was only little when I saw that one, it totally creeped me out. I had to get my Mom to check under my bed every night for months after that."

Oliver shook his head and smiled. "Lenny, the life-sized chocolate moose, Maine."

"_Anatomically_ _correct_ life-sized chocolate moose," Felicity corrected him. "I learnt a lot that day."

Oliver gave a little laugh. "I bet." He tilted his head to read the next postcard which was pinned on its side, not sure what he was looking at until he read the title. "The world's largest pistachio nut, Alamogordo, New Mexico."

"Oh," said Felicity happily, "that was a great one. We got a flat there and the guy who helped us change the tire bought me a whole big slab of Atomic Hot Chili Pistachio Brittle. I ate so much I was sick."

Oliver shook his head. "Didn't your mother ever tell you not to take candy from strangers?"

"I think she was too busy having sex with them to remember," said Felicity candidly.

Oliver looked over towards the closed bathroom door, knowing Felicity would be regretting that comment.

"Not that my Mom was, you know," continued on Felicity hastily. "It's just she got lonely and it couldn't have been easy having sole responsibility of a child. It wasn't her fault."

"It wasn't yours either," countered Oliver.

"I know," said Felicity but she didn't sound completely convinced. "Trevor wasn't such a bad guy though. He stayed with us for a couple of states. That was better than most of the others. It was my birthday the day we met him and he gave me a bottle of pistachio wine with the chocolates. I've still got it, in fact. I'm waiting for a special occasion."

"How old where you?"

"Fourteen."

Oliver made a face. "Fourteen? A grown man is giving a fourteen year old girl alcohol. Are you serious?"

"Don't say it like that. You make it sound creepy," protested Felicity.

"It sounds that way because it is creepy," said Oliver sharply. "Your mother didn't have a problem with a stranger giving her fourteen year old daughter alcohol?"

"I was meant to open it for a special occasion when I got older," said Felicity defensively. "It wasn't weird." She hesitated briefly. "Was it?"

"If I'd caught some grown ass man handing out wine to Thea when she was fourteen I would have punched his lights out and that would have only been the start of it," said Oliver tersely. "I'm not even thrilled when guys do it now."

"I just think Trevor wasn't used to being around kids. He didn't mean any harm and he was just trying to be nice."

"Yeah," said Oliver darkly, "I hear most pedophiles are renowned for being real sweethearts."

"What?"

"Nothing," said Oliver, feeling the need to change the subject. He wished he could have been there for Felicity when she was younger now that he was getting a small glimpse of what her life growing up must have been like. An uncomfortable surge of emotion hit him at the thought of the young and vulnerable Felicity. He wanted to protect her. No, it was more than that, he _needed_ to protect her and hearing about her past only made that need more urgent. Oliver felt his chest tighten, his breathing constrict as the intense protective instincts he had about Felicity threatened to overwhelm him. He drew in a ragged breath, willing himself to calm down. The gas was affecting his emotional equilibrium but he could master this, he'd mastered so many other things by the force of his own will and this was not going to defeat him. Oliver looked around for a change of topic. He picked up the book on Felicity's bedside table. "You're reading 'Jane Eyre'?" Oliver turned the well-worn tome in his hands. "And not for the first time, by the looks of it."

"I read it every six months or so," said Felicity, still taking to him through the door. "It's my favorite book."

Oliver's brow wrinkled as he turned the book back over to look at the cover. "Remind me again, what's it about?"

"Wow, that hugely expensive private education really paid off big time for you, didn't it?" asked Felicity wryly.

"They really didn't offer a curriculum which held my attention at the time," said Oliver dryly.

"Don't tell me, it wasn't so much as the three 'R's' but the three 'P's' – partying, pina coladas and pretty girls."

Oliver half-smiled. "I was more of a beer and scotch drinker around that time but I can't argue with the partying and—"

Felicity chose that moment to walk out of the bathroom. The dress she'd chosen to wear was a dark blue velvet and sleeveless, hugging her figure in a way that made you feel like you were seeing a lot more than you actually were. Felicity's hair was out, framing her face and she'd already done her makeup, understated except for her trademark bright lipstick. Oliver's eyes were immediately drawn to her full lips. "Pretty girls," he rasped, finally finishing his sentence. "Felicity, you look—"

"Is it too much?" fretted Felicity, looking suddenly worried. "Or is it not enough?" She ran her hands down over her hips, smoothing down the material nervously.

"It's perfect," said Oliver without hesitation.

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I suppose it doesn't matter. No one is going to be looking at me anyways."

Oliver opened his mouth to deny such a claim, knowing that there were going to be a lot of men doing just that tonight and most of them wanting to do a lot more than look. He clenched his jaw, trying to rein in the intense emotions such a thought stirred up in him.

"Except for you, of course," said Felicity blithely, "but you've been chemically induced to do that, so it doesn't really count."

Oliver frowned. "You think that's the only way I'd ever—" He bit off his own question, not sure if telling Felicity he'd found himself looking at her more than once in the past was a good idea. Oliver knew his emotions were becoming increasingly erratic when it came to Felicity but he wasn't sure he could blame it entirely on the gas. "You're very beautiful, Felicity. Any man would be crazy not to want you."

"Although, in your case, you had to be crazy to want me." Felicity screwed up her face. "I mean want to be around me, not want me want me… and not that you're crazy, I'm not saying you're crazy." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Could all passengers on the foot and mouth train please fasten their seatbelts because your Captain is about to make an abrupt course adjustment." Felicity opened her eyes and plastered an over bright smile on her lips. "Jane Eyre is about a plain young orphan who ends up being a governess for the mysterious Mr. Rochester who harbors a dark secret. He ends up falling in love with her because she was not like any society he'd ever known before and she brought him out of the darkness which had become his life."

Felicity had been right, that was an abrupt change of direction in conversation but that was probably a good thing and Oliver went with it. "What happened? I'm guessing they ended up together."

"After a few trials and tribulations, Mr. Rochester revealed his true feelings to Jane and asked her to marry him."

"And they all lived happily ever after," said Oliver a little mockingly. His experiences with love had never been so neat and tidy.

"Not exactly," said Felicity, walking over to the mirror on bare feet and picking up a necklace. "Remember that dark secret I mentioned at the beginning? Well, it kind of came back and bit him in the ass, big time."

"The book sounds pretty depressing," noted Oliver as he watched Felicity pull her hair to one side to put her necklace on. "Why do you love it so much?"

A small smile touched Felicity's lips. "Because Jane was someone no one had ever looked at before but Mr. Rochester, he saw her and he pursued her." She continued to fumble with her necklace. "Every woman wants to be seen, to be noticed."

Oliver watched Felicity as she stood at the mirror and fiddled with the clasp of her necklace. He came up behind her and brushed her hand away. "Here, let me."

Felicity held her hair out of his way. "Thanks. You know, I was thinking."

Oliver half-smiled. "When are you ever not thinking?" He made short work of the tiny clasp but didn't immediately move away from Felicity. Oliver fought back the urge to press his lips against the creamy expanse of flesh that was her neck. That would not have been appropriate at all but Oliver couldn't stop his hand lingering on Felicity's neck, fingers brushing over the soft skin. Their eyes met in the mirror they were standing in front of.

"We probably need a safe word," said Felicity hastily, not commenting on his protracted touches but looking flustered nonetheless.

"Safe word?" repeated Oliver in confusion, forcing himself to let his hand fall by his side.

"We really don't know what kind of effect that gas is going to have on you over time so we probably need some kind of signal in case either one of us feels like things are getting out of control."

"Right," said Oliver slowly, "a safe word. That's smart. Got a word in mind?"

Felicity wrinkled her nose and pursed her lips. "How about… aardvark?"

Oliver's lips quirked. "Aardvark?"

"It's not something that would crop up in normal conversation, so yeah, aardvark."

Oliver nodded. "Sounds good to me, but we won't need it. I'm perfectly in control of myself." The occasional inappropriate impulse aside. None of Professor Coates' reports had indicated sexual overtones in her results with the test subjects fixation on her but then, Oliver doubted that any of the men being experimented on had felt about her the way Oliver felt about Felicity before getting a dose of the XR-320. He really didn't want to think about losing any kind of control in that area. That simply wasn't an option.

Felicity's reflection smiled at him. "I know but just in case. We don't want anything to go wrong and ruin Thea's birthday party." She turned around to face him. "Okay, I'm ready. We'd better get going otherwise Thea will think you're blowing her off."

Oliver stepped back to let Felicity get past him. "Well, we definitely don't want that."

**#**

Diggle took a sip of his coffee and scanned the foyer of the hotel. He'd been watching people come and go for the last hour while he listened in on the bug he'd planted in Heston Eastwood's aka Algernon Forbes-Hamilton's hotel room via room service. A very British accent came through his ear piece which Diggle assumed was Forbes-Hamilton.

"Who's next on our guest list?"

"Mr. Giovanni DeLuca," came the reply. "He and his associates are with the Westside mafia. He's looking to do some business with you about the latest assault rifles we have coming in."

"I like dealing with the Italians," noted Forbes-Hamilton. "They always know exactly what they want. How long until they're due?"

"Five minutes away, sir."

Diggle figured that would be as good an in as any he was going to get. His gaze went over to the doorway where three men in expensive suits walked into the foyer. Diggle could see immediately they were all carrying guns. They walked through the foyer and headed directly for the elevator. Diggle stood up and followed them. "Hold the elevator, please," he called out as the three men stood in the elevator. One of the men dutifully kept the door open for him and Diggle gave him a pleasant smile as he walked in. "Thank you." He glanced at the number fifteen button which was lit up on the console.

"What floor?" asked one of the men.

"Fourteen," replied Diggle calmly, staring directly ahead as the doors slid shut. Confined spaces either worked for or against you in a fight and Diggle was good enough to know that they were going to work for him in this particular instance…

**A/N****: Good old, Digg, working it like the legend he is! **

**And the mystery of the Giant Pistachio is revealed. Lol Probably not worth the wait you get that on big jobs, I guess. Party time next chapter… fun times ahead. :D **


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N****: Hi guys, another update for you all. Not much of a reaction to the last chapter, so I really hope you didn't hate it, because there is more of the same coming… which could be awkward if you did hate it. . I can never tell what chapters people are going to react to and which ones they don't. I'm kind of hopeless like that. **

**Anyways, I liked giving Felicity something from my childhood… not a slutty mother, you understand, but rather a fascination with big things. Queensland, the state in Australia I'm from, has a ton of big things – it's kind of an obsession. The one I know best growing up is the Big Pineapple, which, as the label would suggest, is a giant pineapple that you can actually go inside and climb up inside of. It's full of pineapple related memorabilia and you can buy sundaes etc. I also remember brightly coloured silkie chickens at the Big Pineapple. If you don't know what a silkie chicken looks like, google it, I promise you it's worth it. Silkie chickens are awesome kid's pets and are the Lady Gaga of the poultry world. At the Big Pineapple they'd die them with food dyes so there would be pink, blue, green, yellow, red chickens all running around. It was awesome! Lol **

**There is also the giant bull, which is most DEFINITELY anatomically correct. Giant red back spiders crawling into a dunny (outside toilet), giant cassowary, peanut, dugong, gumboot (with a large frog stuck to it) and just too many others to name. In my own hometown we have a giant Captain Cook in the middle of the town, currently standing over a car park. He's doing a Heil Hitler type salute which is kind of an interesting choice for the designers. Captain Cook, for those up for a quick history lesson regarding Australia is regarded as the man who 'discovered' Australia… even though technically it was the Dutch who got here first… and even more technically correct, the land was already inhabited by our indigenous people who'd been there for thousands of years. So, Captain Cook didn't so much discover it, as called dibs on Australia on behalf of the British Empire… which didn't work out too great for the original inhabitants, what with the introduction of alcohol, venereal diseases, stealing of their children and generalized enforced break down of their society. So yeah, colonization… it's not for everyone… particularly if you're the indigenous society being colonized. **

**Okay, sorry, off the beaten track with that particularly ambling preamble. **

**This chapter allowed me to explore Oliver and Thea's relationship more, which I really liked watching the first season. I know things go south towards the end of S2 for them, I haven't watched it yet, but I've gleaned as much from YouTube viewing. Anyways, I like that, like Felicity, his relationship with her allows us to see more than just tortured Oliver. He gets to be a big brother, with all the emotions such a role entails. So yeah, let the muse wander around in that territory for a little bit in this chapter. **

**Let's see what you make of it, eh? **

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

It only took twenty minutes to drive to the venue which was hosting Thea's birthday bash and the car ride over settled the throbbing in Oliver's head. There was something about being confined in a small, dark space with Felicity which made all the tension leave his body. The smell of her was in his nostrils and it made him feel like everything was going to be alright. In fact he was more than a little reluctant to leave the comfort of the car when they pulled up outside the nightclub but attentive valets were already standing at the car doors and letting them out. Oliver handed over his keys and waited until Felicity had walked around to his side. Throngs of people lined the streets in a seemingly never ending stream of birthday revelers going in and out of the club. Oliver took Felicity's elbow and drew her closer to him, feeling his stress levels increase at seeing so many people there. The feeling of her skin against the palm of his hand was comforting though and Oliver determinedly moved them up the stairs to where a broad-chested man with an earpiece and microphone was checking off names on a tablet. He felt Felicity stiffen under his hand as they drew closer.

"I'm not on the guest list," said Felicity anxiously. "I won't get in."

Oliver looked down at her and smiled. "You're attending a Queen birthday function with an actual Queen," he said indulgently. "I don't think it'll be a problem."

Felicity pulled a face. "You don't think Thea will mind me being here? I didn't really think about that when we were planning all of this."

"There is no way Thea knows half the people here," commented Oliver. "She'll be happy to see a familiar face." They were at the door now.

The man running the door inclined his head. "Mr. Queen, ma'am. Go right in."

Oliver smiled at him. "Thank you." He held on tightly to Felicity's arm as they walked into the club and the press of people became more compacted.

"I think everyone in the world is here tonight," said Felicity, forced to raise her voice over the music pumping away from the live DJ standing on center stage.

"We Queens know how to throw a shin ding," said Oliver wryly as he scanned the crowd for his sister.

"Can you see Thea?" asked Felicity, also looking around.

Oliver caught sight of her by a huge swan ice sculpture which was in the center of an opulent buffet. "Over there." He guided them through the crowd until they came up behind Thea as she talked to a group of her friends. Oliver tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey, birthday girl."

Thea spun around, her pretty face splitting into a wide grin when she saw who it was. "Ollie!" she exclaimed happily, throwing her arms around his neck. "You made it."

"It's my baby sister's twentieth birthday party," said Oliver, happily returning her hug. "Why wouldn't I have made it?"

Thea drew back and gave him a pointed look. "Because it's you. You're not exactly known for your reliability these days." She rolled her eyes. "Or ever, really."

Oliver grimaced, knowing he couldn't exactly argue with that and wished for not the first time he could explain why he was forced to flake so often on someone he loved so much.

Thea's curious gaze drifted over to Felicity. "Hi."

"Hi," said Felicity quickly, "happy birthday and sorry I'm crashing your party."

"You're not crashing it," pointed out Thea, glancing over at Oliver. "You came with Ollie."

Felicity smiled. "This party is amazing." Her eyes drifted over to a table simply groaning under the weight of brightly wrapped presents. "And you've got quite the haul to show for it."

Thea glanced back over her shoulder to the gift table and gave a little shrug. "Yeah, I guess."

"How can you not be excited about that many presents to open?" asked Felicity in disbelief. "I love opening presents. When I was a little girl, I used to wrap up things of mine, just so I could have all the fun of unwrapping them."

Thea gave a little laugh. "Really?"

"Well, my Mom was a single mom and it was just the two of us, so money was pretty tight. Birthdays weren't exactly big events. I just had to improvise." Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Only opening gifts you've wrapped yourself is a bit like trying to tickle yourself… it's not quite the same feeling, something gets cancelled out in the process." She grinned. "It's still fun though… the unwrapping presents you've wrapped yourself, I mean… not the tickling. I gave up on trying to tickle myself long ago." Felicity cocked her head. "Although I do try and surprise myself every now and then, you know, catch myself off-guard."

Thea was looking at Felicity with a mixture of amusement and confusion. "If you like, you can help me unwrap the presents later on."

Felicity sucked in an excited breath. "Really?" She suddenly looked cautious. "Which school of unwrapping do you subscribe to? Are you a careful unsticker of sticking plasterer and saving of paper to reuse or are you someone who rips and tears away at the wrapping paper like a crocodile eviscerating an unsuspecting antelope who just came to the water's edge for a drink?"

Thea was trying to hide her smile. "The crocodile, definitely the crocodile."

"Thank heavens," said Felicity in what sounded like real relief. "Those slow poke folders and keepers are worse than Hitler in my books."

Thea was now unable to stop herself from grinning. "Big call."

Felicity gave a shrug. "I stand by it. I just want to scream at them that they're doing it wrong but I don't want to come across as psychotic." She pulled a face. "Although when it comes to how people should unwrap presents, I can get pretty intense."

Thea laughed. "Yeah, I'm seeing that." She looked up at Oliver and shook her head, sharing her amusement with Felicity's candor with him.

Oliver grinned back, a smile of genuine pleasure. He'd been just standing there, quietly listening to two of the most important women in his life interact and enjoying their easy conversation.

Thea sent him a teasing look. "Although, I'm guessing none of those presents are from my big brother."

"I got you a present, Thea," protested Oliver and then he suddenly remembered that he didn't have it and made a contrite face, "but it's at the office."

Thea put her hands on her hips. "Of course it is," she said with mocking skepticism.

"No, it's not," said Felicity quickly, opening her little clutch purse. "I have it." She passed Oliver a beautifully wrapped little box, complete with two different shades of green bows.

Oliver looked at her in surprise as he took the present. "Where did you get this?"

"I brought it from home just now," she told him. Felicity looked at Thea. "Oliver bought this for you and he was going to give it to you just in the box it came in." Felicity rolled her eyes. "It's like he was raised by wolves or something. You can't just give a girl an unwrapped birthday gift. It's the one thing which separates us from the animals."

"Really?" asked Oliver in amusement. "The _one_ thing?"

"The one important thing, yes," said Felicity unapologetically. "Now, give your sister her gift."

Oliver handed the gift over to Thea, smiling warmly down at her. "Happy birthday, Thea. I hope you like it."

Thea accepted the box, looking down at it. "Did you buy this or did you send Felicity out to buy it?"

"I was there," said Felicity, "but it was all Oliver, trust me. I can't tell you how many shops we went to in the end. All I know is that on the way to every new shop, I got another coffee and I was completely wired for days afterwards." She made a face. "I drank a _lot_ of coffee that day. So much that I almost bit a cop."

"Why?" asked Thea hesitantly.

"He came up behind me and startled me," said Felicity. "I bite when I'm startled and after eight cups of black coffee in less than two hours, I startle easy."

"Is that what happened?" asked Oliver in surprise. "I saw you and the officer talking out on the street but I didn't know what you were doing."

"I was trying to talk him into not arresting me for gnawing on a police officer," said Felicity wryly.

"You spent an afternoon shopping for my gift?" asked Thea, looking pleased at the thought.

"I did," said Oliver. "So, like I said, I really hope you like it."

"I'm going to go and get something to eat," said Felicity quickly. "Give you two a moment."

Oliver felt Felicity slip from his hand and his stomach clenched painfully but she was just walking a few feet away to the buffet, picking up a plate and immediately beginning to load it up with a selection of just about everything on the table. Oliver was realizing that as long as he could keep Felicity within eyeshot he could keep his blood pressure under control.

"So, do you want me to open this now?"

Oliver pulled his attention away from Felicity and back to Thea, smiling down at her. "You're the birthday girl, it's up to you."

An excited grin spread across Thea's face and then she was tearing at the paper around the velvet box Oliver knew lay underneath. "Okay, now I get the crocodile analogy," he said playfully, seeing the way she destroyed the wrapping paper with glee.

Thea ignored his teasing, instead opening the black velvet box to reveal the silver charm bracelet which lay inside. "Oh," breathed Thea as she carefully withdrew it from the box.

"Every charm has a meaning," said Oliver, watching her face as she took a closer look at the piece of jewelry. He pointed to a tiny silver crown on the bracelet. "A crown," Oliver explained with a crooked smile, "because you're a Queen." He moved through each charm. "A pair of sneakers because, well, you're Speedy."

Thea gave a little laugh, biting her bottom lip even as tears welled up in her eyes.

"A bike, to remember that entire summer I spent teaching you how to ride." He gave her an impish look. "I never met anyone with such bad balance."

"I had my balance after the first two days," shot back Thea.

"I was there, you really didn't," chuckled Oliver, remembering eight year old Thea's wobbling attempts to stay upright.

She rolled her eyes at him. "I was faking it, idiot."

Oliver was a little taken aback. "You were?"

"Of course I was," she said in exasperation. "If I let you know I could ride the bike then you wouldn't have spent that summer hanging out with me."

"You little sneak," said Oliver with feigned outrage.

"You were about to turn eighteen and even though I was eight, I knew you weren't going to want to be with me as much as I wanted to be with you."

Oliver's face clouded over. "Thea," he said regretfully.

She put a brave smile on her face and just shrugged. "It's okay, it really is. I was just glad we had that summer."

"So was I," said Oliver, fighting back a wave of unexpected emotion.

She looked down at the bracelet again. "What about this one?" Thea pointed to a charm of a little doll.

"That's me," said Oliver with a little smile.

"You're a doll?" asked Thea teasingly. "Really?"

Oliver cocked his head. "Do you remember, when you were really little, how you couldn't get your O's out? So instead of Ollie, you used to call me—"

"Dolly," said Thea, suddenly remembering. "I used to call you Dolly."

He grinned. "It was the first word you learnt and Mom and Dad thought you were talking about an actual doll in the beginning when you'd toddle around the house yelling out Dolly where ever you went."

"But I was calling for you," said Thea knowingly.

"Yeah, you were," said Oliver huskily, remembering those innocent times when he could just pick his sister up in his arms and keep her safe from the world. How he longed to know that simplicity between them again but Oliver knew that wasn't the reality either one of them was living in now. "The doll on the charm, it's me, Thea and every time you look at it I want you to remember that you will always have someone who loves you in this world, always. It doesn't matter where I am or what I'm doing, I'll always be the one who's loved you the longest in your life and the one who'll never stop." He needed Thea to really understand that he was meaning every word he was saying. "The charm isn't full yet because I wanted to leave space for all that we've got ahead of us. I want to add a charm when you graduate college, when you get married and I give you away, when you make me an uncle. We've got a lot of milestones ahead of us, Thea and even though I know I let you down sometimes, I just need you to know it's never my intention. I always want to be there for you, always."

Thea was openly crying now and she pulled him into a tight hug. "It's the best present I've ever gotten in my life," she choked out against his cheek.

Oliver smiled and hugged her back just as tightly. "I'm glad you liked the bracelet, Thea."

She gave a broken little laugh. "Not the bracelet, idiot, I was talking about you."

Oliver felt his own eyes sting with unshed tears at Thea's words.

She drew back and cupped his face. "But I do love the bracelet too, I just love you more."

"I'm very happy to know I win out over a piece of jewelry," said Oliver dryly.

"It was close but you just managed at it," said Thea mischievously. "Can you help me put it on?" She held the bracelet up to him.

"I believe that is within my skill set," he said easily, taking the bracelet and wrapping it around her slender wrist. "I helped Felicity with her necklace earlier this evening, so I've already got my eye in." This clasp was a little stiffer however, so Oliver had to fiddle with it a little bit. "Is Roy around?"

"He wasn't invited," said Thea primly.

Oliver flicked her a quick look. "And why didn't you invite your boyfriend to your birthday party?"

Her lips pressed into a disapproving line. "We're having a little time out."

"His idea or yours?"

"Mine."

"Why?"

"Roy knows what he's done," said Thea in vague annoyance, "and when he's willing to apologize, then we'll see where that takes us but in the meantime, he doesn't get to eat any of my birthday cake."

"I'm going to take that as a literal statement rather than a euphemism," said Oliver wryly, "for my own peace of mind as your big brother."

Thea's lips quirked. "You do that." She cocked her head. "You didn't come home last night," noted Thea as she waited patiently for him to be done with the bracelet.

"I know," said Oliver, sending her a distracted look. "You weren't worried, were you? Because I don't want you to worry when I don't come home some nights. I'm just out… you know…"

"Helping Felicity with her jewelry, all night long," asked Thea innocently. "I get that."

Oliver managed to get the clasp to slide into place and then gave Thea a wary look. "No, that isn't what I was going to say."

Thea arched an eyebrow. "Are you telling me you didn't spend the night at Felicity's?"

Oliver hesitated. "Ah… well—"

Thea laughed. "Way to think on your feet, big brother."

"It's not like that with us," said Oliver hastily.

She looked up at him with interest. "What is it like then?"

Oliver's gaze strayed over to where Felicity was happily chewing her way through the plate of food she'd collected for herself, watching the people walk by. "We're friends," said Oliver lamely.

"Well, that would be a first for a woman you're sleeping with," said Thea dryly.

"We're not sleeping together," said Oliver quickly.

"I know, you're staying awake together," said Thea impishly. "At least that's how my sex ed classes tell me it works."

"Thea," said Oliver in exasperation. He didn't want his sister to misunderstand the relationship between himself and Felicity. After all, he was doing a good enough job of that all on his own but Oliver didn't really know how to explain what was going on between himself and Felicity because out of all the things he didn't know, the one thing he did was that it wasn't all about the XR-320. Oliver had spent a long time carefully compartmentalizing his feelings about Felicity, tucking them away where they could cause no harm to anyone, particularly Felicity. But with these latest turn of events any and all compartments had been well and truly shattered and Oliver was left with a tidal wave of unchecked emotions when it came to Felicity and he didn't know how to reign it all back in and take control of the situation again.

"Oliver," returned Thea mockingly.

"Felicity and I…"

"Yes?"

Oliver cleared his throat a little nervously. "Felicity and I… well, the thing is, we're… we're… ah— "

Thea arched an eyebrow. "Would you like to buy a vowel?" she asked, lips twitching.

He sent her an unamused look. "You know, I'm the big brother here, I don't have to give an account of my love life to you, Speedy."

"So, you're admitting Felicity is involved in your love life," said Thea cheekily.

Oliver scowled. "No, that isn't what I said," he said quickly.

"It's what you said and I'm pretty sure it's what you meant as well," said Thea blithely.

Oliver was quickly losing a lot of ground in this discussion. "Okay, you're being annoying, I want my bracelet back," he grumbled, momentarily stumped as to how to get himself out of this.

Thea quickly put her hands behind her back. "Well, you can't have it back." She grinned. "And you particularly can't have it back because your panties are all in a bunch over Felicity."

"My panties—" Oliver grimaced and decided against finishing that sentence and tried again. "I'm not worked up about Felicity." _Such a barefaced lie_. Oliver was a little surprised he wasn't struck down on the spot for just uttering such a monumental untruth.

"Just admit you're head over heels when it comes to Felicity and I'll leave you alone."

_Head over heels_. That was an apt description because Oliver found himself continually feeling a little dizzy around Felicity these days but, in a strange irony, she was the only thing which made him feel grounded at the same time. "I'm not admitting to anything," said Oliver stubbornly.

Thea rolled her eyes. "You do know that the world won't end if you admit to having feelings for the girl, right?"

Oliver made a face. "We have no way of knowing that for sure," he said a little grimly, sneaking a glance over towards Felicity who was back at the buffet table, restocking her plate.

"Sometimes you've just got to have a little faith and take the leap," said Thea philosophically. "You've never had trouble blindly throwing yourself into a woman in the past." She looked at him in interest. "What's so different about Felicity?"

"Everything," said Oliver before he could stop himself.

Thea's gaze was intent. "You don't say?"

Oliver shook his head at her, knowing he'd given too much away and he really didn't want his sister asking any more pointed questions about himself and Felicity. He took a deep breath, intent on nipping this line of questioning in the bud before it went any further. "Thea," he said sternly, "there is only one thing you need to know about me and Felicity."

"And that is?"

Oliver was about to set the record straight with Thea and be done with this conversation when he heard Felicity give a little gasp of surprise, hearing the small sound despite the noisiness of the room. Apparently his hearing was as attuned to the sound of her voice as he was to her scent. Oliver's head snapped around to where Felicity was standing, his eyes going wide at what he was seeing, breathe exhaling in an angry hiss…

**A/N****: Hmm, now, I wonder what it is Oliver could be seeing? Any guesses? Would it help if I told you there are dancing bears at this party? There isn't, but I'm curious to know if that would help with your guessing. ;) **


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N****: Hi guys! Your Auntie Lou thanks you for all the love for the last chapter. I was beginning to worry I was boring you and seeing as I've written at least another ten chapters to this story already, that was making me a little bit worried. . **

**I'm very happy to know you're on board with the Olicity date and the Thea/Oliver interactions because there is more of both in this chapter. So, that was lucky. I found Felicity adorable in this chapter, in part because she is so totally different from Oliver in every way. They come from different worlds, they react to situations differently, Oliver internalizes, Felicity externalizes… often, with a lot of run on sentences. They shouldn't work but the whole 'opposites attract' thing just kicks in and it does. Excuse me while I fangirl quietly over in the corner. Just kidding… fangirls are never quiet, it's all that squealing, we just can't help ourselves.**

**Hank and I saw the latest TV promo for season 3 of Arrow and saw the Olicity kiss tease. There was so much excitement in the house, faeces were being flung about with gay abandon. Me, that is, not Hank. On a related note, that's also why I'm not allowed to go to any more weddings – I get caught up in romantic moments and then it's anything goes. **

**Hank was horrified, which is pretty rich considering what I just walked in on him doing. I don't want to scar anyone's delicate psyche forever but let's just say I'm probably never going to eat Easy Cheese again… or look at a Ken doll the same way again. I really don't think Barbie knows what Ken gets up to on his 'boy's nights' out and that's probably a good thing. Couples can know too much about each other in my opinion. Don't let Ken's perfect hair and smile and molded plastic crotch fool you – that guy is into some nasty shit, just take my word for it. **

**Meanwhile, back at the ranch, there is a chapter to be read, so, I guess we should crack on eh? **

**Tally ho, chaps….!**

**CHAPTER NINE**

Over by Felicity there was now a man standing beside her. He was grabbing some napkins from the table to soak up the champagne he'd obviously just spilt down the front of Felicity's dress. Something snapped inside of Oliver to see this man wiping away at Felicity's dress, touching her all over. He stalked over to the two of them, pushing people out of his way and leaving a confused Thea in his wake.

"I'm so sorry," apologized the man hastily, trying his best to soak up the alcohol from Felicity's dress. "I just didn't see you standing there."

"It's okay," said Felicity, having grabbed a couple of napkins as well and trying to get the worst out herself. "It was just an acciden—"

Oliver had just reached them and he immediately grabbed the man's wrist, violently jerking him away from Felicity. "Don't touch her!" he practically yelled.

Both Felicity and the man were looking at him in shock. She quickly put a hand to Oliver's arm. "It's okay," said Felicity sharply. "Nothing is wrong, Oliver."

Oliver was glaring death at the other man, his emotions a riot of angry outrage. "He was pawing at you," he snarled. All Oliver could think about was beating this man to a pulp for having the audacity to lay his hands on Felicity. His right hand curled into a fist on instinct.

"No, he really wasn't," said Felicity urgently. "Oliver, look at me." She grabbed his face and made him tear his attention from the taken aback man. "I'm fine. It was just an accident. There isn't anything to get upset about here."

Oliver stared at her in disbelief. "He was touching you," he ground out. Why didn't Felicity understand how bad that was? Why the man didn't deserve to live. It seemed so obvious to Oliver, he didn't even question it. His heart monitor began to beep with frantic insistence.

"Aardvark, Oliver," said Felicity in low undertones, holding his gaze intently. "Aardvark."

Oliver swallowed hard, trying to clear the red haze which had settled in his brain the instant he'd seen the other man touching Felicity. She was right, he was overreacting in a major way and Oliver couldn't help but feel shaken by the intensity of his emotions.

Felicity's other hand moved to his fist and she wrapped her hand around his. "Just breathe," she instructed him, still holding his gaze. "You're fine, just breathe."

"Oliver?" asked Thea a little uncertainly, having followed him over and witnessed the whole scene.

Felicity's touch was causing the tension to ebb from Oliver's body. He uncurled his fist and did what she told him to, he breathed. The heart monitor stopped beeping as his blood pressure came back under control. Oliver looked over at Thea, noticing the man who'd spilt the drink on Felicity had already disappeared into the crowd. Smart move on the man's behalf.

"Low blood sugar," blurted out Felicity. "No need to worry, Thea." She picked up her half-eaten plate of food and shoved it at Oliver. "Here, eat something, you'll feel better."

"Since when do you have low blood sugar?" Thea quizzed him.

Oliver dutifully put a chocolate-covered strawberry in his mouth, going along with Felicity's cover story. "It's kind of a recent thing," he said around the mouthful of sweet treat.

"And it makes him cranky," said Felicity quickly. "But you're fine now, aren't you, Oliver?"

Now that the man was gone from anywhere near Felicity and she was only standing a couple of feet away, Oliver did feel the tension ebbing from his body. "I'm fine," he agreed readily.

Felicity looked down at dress. "I need to wash this out before it stains." She looked at Thea. "Do you know which way the lady's room is?"

Thea pointed behind her. "Over there."

"Thanks, I'll be right back."

Without thinking about it, Oliver started to follow her.

Felicity stopped and held up a hand. "Actually, Oliver, I think I've got this. I'm going to the lady's room, you know, where women all come together and do lady things together." She paused and screwed up her face. "Okay, that came out more overtly sexual then I intended. Although I guess there are lady's bathrooms out there where that kind of things happen. I know at the Fallen Angel I once walked in on—" Felicity stopped abruptly and shook her head. "But that probably isn't the point. What was my point? Oh right, Oliver, you can't come with me. Stay here. I won't be gone long."

Oliver fought against arguing the point with her because he really didn't want Felicity out of his eyeshot for even a second after what he'd just witnessed. He felt his chest tightened but he kept a valiant smile plastered on his face. "Sure, no problem." He could control this, he had to.

"Just eat something," she instructed him. Felicity went to hurry off but then she stopped abruptly and turned back around, coming up to him. "Just not the crab cakes. I've been saving them for last because they're the best."

Oliver looked down at the plate of food he was holding and then over at the buffet. "There are plenty more crab cakes on the table."

"Yes but I've picked out all the crunchiest ones," said Felicity in agitation. "So, don't eat them, okay?" She turned around and walked back up to him. "Or the green saucy stuff. I don't know what it is but I'm seriously thinking of amending my will to be buried in a tub of the stuff."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Thea turn her head away but not before giving a little snort of laughter. "Is there anything on this plate I can eat?" asked Oliver in wry amusement.

"Sure, anything else." Felicity paused and seemed to be rethinking that as she studied the plate carefully. "Except for maybe, no, okay, yes, you can have anything else." She gave him a hard look. "But I'm serious about the crab cakes. Like sneak into your room, smother you with a pillow and dissolve your body in a vat of acid kinda serious."

Oliver's lips were twitching again. "That does sound serious," he agreed readily.

"Just so long as we're both on the same page." Felicity turned around and this time she actually did leave.

Thea folded her arms in front of herself and cocked her head, looking up at him as he started to pick away at the plate. "Wow, she is so the boss of you." Thea grinned. "I like it."

"Felicity is not the boss of me," grumbled Oliver, trying to distract himself from the fact he could feel his anxiety levels rising now that she was no longer in sight.

"I guess I know what you were going to tell me about you and Felicity, that little meltdown pretty much said it all," said Thea easily.

Oliver scowled at her. "Low blood sugars, remember?" He tried to cover his tracks. "That had nothing to do with Felicity."

Thea gave an inelegant snort. "You do realize this is my twentieth birthday and not my second, right? I no longer fall for 'got your nose' or the tooth fairy gambit. What just happened was nothing about low blood sugar and everything about some guy getting handsie with your girl."

Oliver's hand tightened on the plate of food at just remembering his emotions at seeing the party goer with his hands all over Felicity. A muscle ticked in his jaw as he fought to bring himself under control about even the memory of the incident.

"So, this is serious then?" said Thea, watching the play and emotions across his face.

Oliver blew out a worried breath, not sure he could handle any more serious complications from his gas exposure. "I sure hope not." He paused. "Wait, what are you talking about?"

"You and Felicity."

"Again, there is no me and Felicity."

Thea continued on as though he hadn't spoken. "I mean, I kind of assumed you'd slept with her when you first made her your assistant."

Oliver gave her a sharp look. "Why would you say that?"

Thea made a tutting noise. "Oliver, I say this with a lot of love—"

"I'm getting a real aversion to people saying that to me," he said flatly.

"But you're kind of a slut," continued on Thea blithely. "Any attractive girl with a pulse is pretty much fair game for you."

Oliver wanted to say that wasn't true but it was hard with his kind of history.

"And then you discard them but you've kept Felicity around and now I can see why."

Oliver looked at her intently, suddenly curious. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that I can see why you're attracted to her in more than just a physical way." Thea half-smiled. "Face it, Oliver, Felicity is funny, sincere, has no filters and is completely candid with everyone she meets. You know, the complete opposite of the good old Queen family legacy where we bury all of our emotions until we're a festering pool of cold-hearted nothingness with no kind of moral fiber whatsoever." She pulled a face. "Really looking forward to that endgame," she said sarcastically. "We need people like Felicity in our lives to save us from our family curse." Thea laid a hand on his arm. "And I've glad you found her." Her expression became teasing. "And it can't hurt that she also appears to know her way around a strip club."

"Felicity didn't work at a strip club," said Oliver hastily, his hopes that Thea would let Felicity's Fallen Angel reference slide now dashed. "She worked above one."

"Hey, no judgment here," said Thea easily. "Compared to our family's history, she's still got a better chance of sainthood than any of us ever will, even if she was running the joint and burying dead hookers in the basement."

"Our family isn't that bad," protested Oliver.

Thea arched an eyebrow at him.

"Okay, maybe it is," said Oliver ruefully.

"I'm just saying I get the Felicity thing and I'm happy for you."

Oliver took a mouthful of food from the plate and chewed, really wishing he understood the Felicity thing as well as Thea seemed to think she did.

"You just ate one of Felicity's crab cakes," noted Thea in amusement.

"Oh crap!" said Oliver, realizing she was right. He hadn't been paying attention.

"Don't worry, what are the chances she has an actual vat of acid laying around her home?" said Thea teasingly. "Although, I'm kind of getting the feeling that if anyone could source something like that, it'd be Felicity." She took in his concerned face. "Relax, maybe she won't notice."

Oliver grimaced. "She'll notice. Felicity is kind of detailed orientated that way," he said morosely. This wasn't about a crab cake, this was about him unable to keep his head in the game and concentrate. Oliver looked over at the bathroom door with some agitation. How much longer was Felicity going to be? He felt the sweat beginning to gather on his back.

"Hey Thea!"

Thea turned her head and acknowledged the young woman calling out to her. She looked back at Oliver. "My devoted fans await," she said with a half-smile. "I'd better go." Thea cocked her head. "Are you going to be okay?"

_Such a good question._ "Of course I am," said Oliver instantly. "Why wouldn't I be?" Damn, that question after a lie thing again. He really did need to work on that.

"Just try not to punch out any of my guests if they happen to look sideways at Felicity at some point tonight," she said teasingly.

Oliver knew she was only joking but he couldn't help the scowl which came to his face at the thought of other men looking at Felicity.

Thea shook her head and laughed as his expression darkened. She picked up a mini-quiche from his plate and held it up to his lips. "Here, eat something and try and rein in the green-eyed monster."

Oliver accepted the quiche, chewing on it begrudgingly. "I'm not jealous," he muttered.

Thea rolled her eyes. "Of course not." She smiled up at him. "Thank you for my present. I love it." Thea squeezed his arm. "Don't go without saying goodbye, okay?"

Oliver nodded and then Thea was disappearing into the crowd. Oliver chewed on his food moodily, the throbbing in his head starting up again. He wiped at his brow, feeling the sweat collecting there. The feeling of being out of control of his body bothered him. He'd spent years honing his mind and body to work as a weapon at any moment. Having both breakdown on him like this was disconcerting as hell. Oliver relied on his mental and physical strength to be who he needed to be. Without either the feelings of being back adrift at sea in that life boat assailed him. Oliver had never wanted to feel like that again. Through all the crowd of people, Oliver caught the whiff of a familiar scent and it immediately made him relax a little from his dark thoughts. He caught the top of Felicity's blonde head as she weaved her way through the people back to him. Oliver felt his anxiety levels all but dissipate when she was back standing beside him.

"Crisis averted," she announced. Felicity smoothed down her dress. "I really didn't want the dress to be ruined. I love this dress. It reminds me of a velvet dress when I had when I was a little girl. I thought I was a princess in it." She grinned up at Oliver. "Plus, when you stroke it, you feel like you're patting a cow. I had a cow thing growing up." Felicity stopped abruptly. "That sounded weird saying that aloud. I just mean I really liked cows… platonically… I'm not saying I found them sexually attractive because why would I, I was only like, six. Not that I find them sexually attractive now that I'm older," she finished off hastily. "And besides, cows are females and I'm not gay… although is that what it would be if I did find cows sexually attractive? Does the term lesbian work with cross species romances?" Felicity pursed her lips. "I wonder if I'm the first person to ask that question? Probably because I feel like what I'm describing is illegal. Not the lesbian thing, the having sex with cows things. I'm guessing that's illegal… or at least, for the cow's sake, I hope it is." She nodded. "I think it definitely is… and I'll probably stop talking now… because that seems like a good idea."

Oliver gave her a warm look as he was treated to the rambling thought process of Felicity Smoak. "Have I ever told you how much I like hearing what you're thinking?"

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Well, that makes one of us."

"Can I ask – why cows?"

"Because they've got big brown eyes and wet noses and are just generally adorable," said Felicity. "I wanted a pet cow so badly when I was six but Mom said no."

"I think your Mom was probably thinking the Princess might not be able to accommodate a full grown cow on your travels," said Oliver wryly.

Felicity pouted. "And I'll tell you what I told her, we could have gotten a trailer to put Penelope in."

"Penelope?"

"I named the cow."

Oliver smiled. "Of course you did."  
Felicity looked down at the plate. "You ate one of my crab cakes. There used to be five."

"No, there didn't," said Oliver quickly, having forgotten his crime.

Felicity arched a disbelieving eye at him. "Why are you even attempting to lie about it?"

Oliver grimaced. "I don't know, basic survival instinct."

She rolled her eyes. "Oliver, I said keep your hands off my crab cakes."

Ever since Felicity had made the comment about what touching her velvet dress had felt like Oliver's hand had actually been itching to touch her and find out for himself. He was trying not to think about it which, of course, meant it was the only thing he could think about. It seemed Felicity's crab cakes weren't the only thing he was going to struggle to keep his hands off tonight.

"You realize there are going to be consequences, right?"

Oliver blinked, knowing full well what those consequences might be if he didn't manage to keep his hands to himself.

"Don't make me smother you with a pillow again," she threatened him.

"Again?" asked Oliver intently, knowing Felicity was only talking about crab cakes even as his mind took him other places.

Felicity looked at little stricken. "No, not again, I've never smothered you with a pillow for any other reason, ever," she blurted out. "Why would I do something like that while you were sleeping?"

Oliver gave her an odd look for that hasty denial and the question afterwards which flagged it as a lie. "Okay," he said slowly. When and why would have Felicity tried to smother him with a pillow? Oliver didn't know if there was an answer to those questions he'd like to hear.

Felicity glanced at her watch, seeming to want to change the subject. "I wonder how Diggle is going?"

"He'll be on top of it," said Oliver confidently. "He always is."

"I know, Digg is the best."

Oliver tried to ignore the flash of jealousy he felt at Felicity singing the other man's praises. He knew he was being ridiculous but that didn't stop the way he was feeling. Oliver tried to distract himself from his wayward emotions and took another mouthful of food from the plate.

"Oliver!" said Felicity in disbelief. "Did you just eat another one of my crab cakes?"

"No," mumbled Oliver around his mouthful of crab-filled cake.

Felicity folded her arms and looked up at him defiantly.

"Okay, yes, maybe a little bit."

She shook her head at him. "Unbelievable."

He gave a sheepish smile. "You're right though, the crunchy ones are the best."

"I'm always right about crustacean-based appetizers," said Felicity as she took back her plate of food from him. "It's like my super power. Granted, it's got limited use as far as super powers go but if you're at an all you can eat seafood buffet with too much food to choose from, I'm so you're go to girl."

Oliver half-smiled. "You're my go to girl, period."

For once Felicity didn't seem to know what to say to something like that. She bit her bottom lip and flushed a little and now she was the one distracting herself with food as she picked up one of the remaining crab cakes and popped it in her mouth. Oliver tried not to watch her chew and the way she licked her lips after downing the tasty morsel only he couldn't stop himself. If he leant down and kissed her now Oliver knew she'd taste of seafood mixed with that intoxicating scent of hers which had been driving him crazy all day. And the chances of Oliver finding a way to stop just there felt pretty low right then. He shoved his hand into his pocket and fumbled for his phone. "I think I'll ring Diggle, see how he's going," said Oliver abruptly, taking a couple of steps away from Felicity and the temptation she was currently posing.

"Okay," said Felicity easily, unaware of the effect she was having on him as she swallowed her mouthful of food.

Oliver tore his gaze away from Felicity's lips as she once again licked them and dialed Diggle's number as though his life depended on it. Which it did… in more ways than one.

**A/N****: Okay, so now we know Felicity has a crustacean-based super power… will it help in the unfolding drama… it's so hard to know without reading on! **


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N****: And here we are, up to double figures in our chapters, officially one more than 'Secret Women's Business'. I've actually just finished with chapter 21 and I have to say, it's one of my weirder chapters, dialog-wise. I can kind of relate to Felicity's free-flowing thought processes and that is why I enjoy writing for her so much. There is no filter and that is a lot of fun to play around with. But, that's a chapter which is way off, so we won't dilly dally over that right now. **

**I will say though that I'm writing for a partnership in this story involving Diggle and someone else which I'm currently having a ball with. Can't wait for you to read their chapters! But yet again, I digress. **

**This chapter… let's see, we're still at the party and Green Arrow is becoming more and more the Green-Eyed Arrow… see what I did there? Yeah, I know, it's a pretty lame pun but hey, I'm doing this for free, what do you expect! Plus, I'm distracted by the fact a rat has taken up residence in my house. I know, it's disgusting. We're currently having a battle of wills and D'artagnan is winning. Yes, I named the rat after one of the Three Musketeers, what of it? Well, actually he's the fourth Musketeer if we're being totally accurate… the real literary D'artagnan that is, not the rat… although I don't know what he gets up to in his private life, maybe he is a Musketeer in his free time… although I suppose that would make him… wait for it… a Mousketeer. I know, I totally went there and there was nothing you could do to stop me… even though now a team of Disney lawyers are currently making a charge to my door with orders to cease and desist with my use of Disney copyrighted material. **

**Okay, I've got to finish cutting out words from the newspaper before I go to work so I'd better get a wiggle on. I'm leaving death threats for D'artagnan around the place, you know, like those ransom notes kidnappers leave. I'm assuming D'artagnan can read… but then again, rats have up to 150 babies a year, so if they could read, maybe there'd be a lower pregnancy rate. **

**Hmm… I may have to ponder this plan of attack further now that I think about it. I know there was this one researcher who was looking to find natural means to stop a rat plague and what he did was get a handful of rats, sewed up their buttholes (hmm, spellcheck was cool with butthole – who knew the guy was so open minded) and released them back into the general population of rats. The sewed up butthole rats then went crazy and attacked and killed all the other rats. To be honest, I can't blame them. If someone sewed up my anus, I would not be in the best frame of mind either. Although, I will say this - it's experiments like these that make me side eye the whole community of scientists… which is a bit tricky because I'm a medical scientist myself. Have you ever tried to side eye yourself? Don't, it hurts and people start giving you wide berths in the street. **

**I'm not quite at the point of performing cross stitch on D'artagnan's anus yet but I'm not completely discounting it all together. I'll keep you updated… although maybe you'd like that veil of mystery pulled back across between us with this particular one. Sometimes you can know too much about a person. Rat buttholes feels like one of those things. **

**And on that high note, why don't you read on with the chapter… :D **

**CHAPTER TEN**

Diggle felt his phone vibrate in his coat pocket as he stepped out of the elevator. He answered the phone as he turned around and surveyed the three unconscious men on the floor of the elevator. Diggle pressed the elevator button, closing the door on the men. "Hello?"

"Digg, it's me," said Oliver. "How's it going?"

"Fine," said Diggle calmly as he pulled out his gun with a silencer attached and shot out the elevator panel, stranding the elevator with the unconscious men between floors. "How's things going your end?"

"Fine… mostly."

"Mostly?"

"Everything is okay," said Oliver quickly. "No problem. Have you made contact yet?"

"About to," said Diggle as he walked down the corridor. "Got to go. I'll call when I have the information we need. Save me some cake." He hung up and turned down the corridor to find two broad-chested men standing by the room Diggle knew Forbes-Hamilton was occupying. He smiled pleasantly at them both. "I'm Giovanni DeLuca," said Diggle cordially. "I believe you were expecting me?"

**#**

"Is Diggle okay?" asked Felicity as she watched Oliver pocket his phone.

"Yeah, he'll call to let us know when the job is done."

"Hopefully he'll get what we need out of Guns McBang Bang."

Oliver half-smiled at the nickname. "Hopefully."

Felicity eyed the food table. "So, do you think there will be cake?"

"If there is, Diggle wants some," said Oliver wryly.

"It's not really a birthday without cake," noted Felicity. "I'm going to go and look." Oliver grabbed her wrist and Felicity looked up at him in surprise. "It's okay, I'm only going over there." She pointed to the table.

Oliver didn't let go of her wrist. "I-ah… they'll bring the cake out later. It'll be back with the caterers."

"Oh, okay."

To Oliver's relief Felicity gave up on her hunt for cake, staying by his side. The room seemed to be filling up with more and more people as the party went on. Oliver moved restlessly on the spot, keeping a watchful eye on the crowd and ignoring the way Felicity was looking at him in concern.

She lifted her arm which he was still holding so she could check on his monitor. "Your blood pressure is right up," Felicity noted disapprovingly. "What is going on?"

"Nothing," said Oliver, not stopping in keeping his vigil of everyone else in the room.

"I'm standing right here," she noted. "You said you're okay if I'm nearby. If I get any closer we'll be arrested for public indecency."

"I know."

"Then why is your blood pressure so high?" Felicity looked at the watch again. "And getting higher?"

Oliver grimaced. "I'm okay."

"Clearly you're not." Felicity came to stand in front of him, making him look at her. "Tell me what is going on with you."

Oliver hesitated, worried that if he told her the truth Felicity would think he was crazy and maybe she wouldn't be wrong.

"Oliver," said Felicity in exasperation, "you have to talk to me. You can't keep secrets, not about this. We have limited information about what this gas does and the fact that you nearly ODed on the stuff puts this whole thing into a different ball game of the unknown. None of us know how this poisoning is going to progress and if we're going to keep ahead of this thing, you really need to keep me in the loop. Just tell me what is going on with you and we'll deal."

Oliver gave her an anguished look, not even wanting to admit to himself what the problem was. "Felicity."

"Just tell me, Oliver. I can't fix anything if I don't know what the problem is."

"All these men," he blurted out, unable to keep it in anymore, "I can't stand them being around you. It's driving me crazy."

Felicity looked at him blankly. "What?"

Oliver knew it didn't make sense but it didn't stop the way he was feeling. "Every man is looking at you, wanting to take you away from me."

"Oliver, I can promise you that isn't true," said Felicity in surprise. "And even if it was, I'm not going anywhere with anyone else other than you."

Oliver wanted to believe her, he really did but every man who walked by them felt like this huge threat to Felicity and all he wanted to do was protect her.

She put a concerned hand on his chest. "You need to just calm down. Your heart is beating way too fast."

Oliver squeezed his eyes close, willing himself to get past this feeling of all these men closing in on Felicity. There was a part of his brain which registered that wasn't the case but every instinct he possessed just wanted to scoop Felicity up and get her out of there. "I-I think I need to get out of here," he rasped. Oliver opened his eyes and grimaced, hating admitting to the weakness. "I'm losing a bit of perspective here."

Felicity's head bobbed up and down. "Of course, we can go right now, just say goodbye to Thea before we go. You can tell her I've got a headache or something." She looked around and spotted Thea in the crowd. "She's right there. You go and speak to Thea and I'll wait for you here."

Oliver eyed where Felicity was standing, her back against the wall and away from the general flow of people all around them. It seemed like a relatively secure area and he could get back to her with little effort if anyone tried to hurt her. The threat to Felicity felt very real and it was making Oliver hyper vigilant on her behalf.

Felicity tilted her head. "Oliver?"

He blinked, realizing his strategizing had distracted him from answering. "Yes, okay. I'll be right back." Oliver headed over towards Thea, throwing a quick glance back over his shoulder a couple of times to make sure Felicity hadn't moved from where he left her. He walked up beside Thea and put a hand on her back as she was talking to her friends. "Can I have a quick moment, Speedy?"

"Don't tell me, you've got to go," said Thea easily as she let him draw her off to one side.

Oliver made a regretful face. "Sorry, Felicity's got a headache. I should really take her home."

Thea's lips quirked. "And make sure she's tucked securely into bed, I'm guessing. I'm also guessing I'm not going to see you tonight at home, am I?"

"Thea—"

"It's alright," said Thea casually. "I told you, I like Felicity. She's not like all the other women you normally date and I can't help but think that's a good thing."

"And I told you, Thea," said Oliver in agitation. "Felicity and I aren't dating. We're just friends."

Thea made a clucking sound. "That's probably just as well seeing as that guy hitting on her seems pretty determined."

Oliver whirled around, a surge of violent protectiveness causing a roaring sensation in his ears. He spotted Felicity over against the wall where he'd left her, head bent over her phone as she tapped away on it and with no man in sight.

"Made you look."

Oliver looked back at Thea, jaw hardening. "Don't do that." He forced himself to relax when every instinct had him wanting to launch himself at Felicity and scream for every other man to keep the hell away from her. "Seriously, just don't."

"Why do you keep on denying it? You've obviously crazy about the woman," said Thea knowingly.

"That's kind of the problem," muttered Oliver, still waiting for his heart to stop pounding so violently in his chest at even the suggestion another man might be trying anything with Felicity. Oliver could feel his grasp on his own self-control dwindling away and Felicity was right. They had no way of knowing how much his mental state was going to continue to deteriorate. It wasn't a happy thought. Oliver needed to get out of here. He needed to be alone with Felicity so she could make this throbbing in his head go away and so he could think straight again.

"I've never seen you this possessive over a woman before," noted Thea. "Not even Laurel. What gives?"

Oliver screwed up his face. "It's complicated."

"Of course it is, it's you," said Thea in amusement.

"No, I mean it's really complicated, even for me," said Oliver morosely. "Like Chinese algebra complicated. There are extenuating circumstances." _Such as_ _being poisoned by a psychosis-inducing gas which causes you to have a fixation on the one person you already had a hard time getting out of your head._ He gave her a firm look. "And it isn't what it looks like."

Thea pursed lips and looked up at him. "It looks like a woman has you completely out of your comfort zone and you don't know what the hell you're doing."

"Okay," said Oliver slowly, "it's a little bit what it looks like but there is more to the story."

Thea sighed. "There always is with you, Ollie. I feel like I'm back in high school and reading the cliff notes of a book I'm having an exam on. I get the gist of it but I don't really know the whole story."

Oliver made a contrite face. "I'm sorry, Thea. It's not that I want to keep you out of my life."

"But you just do… because of secret squirrel reasons," said Thea in resignation. "I get it. I'm a Queen, we're all about the big secret keeping."

Oliver wished he could argue with that but he couldn't. "Just as long as it's no secret how much I love you and worry about you," he said sincerely.

Thea smiled. "I know."

Oliver bent down and kissed her cheek. "I'll see you later." He rethought that. "Actually, I might be out of town for a couple of days on business but I'll call you." Oliver really didn't know how much worse he was going to get but he didn't want Thea in the middle of all this. It was bad enough Felicity and Diggle were caught up in this nightmare. It was most likely going to be best that he kept his distance for a little while.

"I know, you're a leaf on the wind and I never know when you're going to blow by," said Thea laconically.

Oliver squeezed her hand, the jabbing pain in his head making him need to cut this conversation short. "Love you."

"Love you too," said Thea. She gave an impish smile. "Have fun playing doctors and nurses with Felicity."

With a last disapproving look at that comment, Oliver hurried back to Felicity. As soon as he took her arm he released the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding.

Felicity flicked her phone off. "I just checked on your blood results back at the lair," she told him as Oliver started to direct them towards the door. "Your hormones level are going bat guano crazy," she said unhappily. "Your adrenalin is right up, along with your cortisol and epinephrine levels, you know, the hormones for our fight or flight response. And your testosterone levels are off the charts."

Oliver kept a tight hold of Felicity's arm, his other hand at her back as they weaved their way through the throng of people. "You took that blood right after I had that attack. I'm sure they're better now." They were outside now and the people were thinning out. Oliver still kept a wary eye on every man that passed them but he could feel himself starting to calm down as all the potential threats to Felicity were left behind.

"Maybe," said Felicity, not sounding that convinced. "I think we should go back to the lair and take some more blood, see what your hormones are up to now."

"Fine," said Oliver, hurrying them towards his car the valet was just pulling up in ahead of them.

"Oliver, slow down, it's not the Kentucky Derby," complained Felicity as she stumbled a little. "I've got to do this with shorter legs and higher heels."

"Sorry," said Oliver regretfully as he immediately slowed his pace. He glanced longingly at his car which still seemed too far away. The confined space of his car felt like sanctuary to Oliver, somewhere he could be alone with Felicity and away from all the noise of other people, in particular, other men.

"The lady's right," came a voice from behind them. "What's the rush, Queen?"

Oliver's jaw hardened at hearing the familiar voice. He didn't need this, not tonight.

**#**

Heston Eastwood looked Diggle up and down from where he sat on the large, overfilled sofa. He tilted his greying, perfectly coiffed head to one side and looked skeptical. "You're Giovanni DeLuca?"

Diggle arched a challenging eyebrow at him as they stood in the living room of the expensive hotel suite. "What, a black man can't be Italian? That's pretty racially insensitive of you, Mr. Eastwood."

The older, trim looking and expensively dressed man gave a little laugh and smiled. "Sorry, you're just not quite what I expected. Forgive my forthrightness."

"Actually, I'm rather counting on your forthrightness tonight," said Diggle coolly.

Eastwood smiled. "I'm glad to hear it. Now, I believe you have something for me?"

Diggle reached inside his coat pocket and withdrew the letter of introduction he'd retrieved from the real Giovanni DeLuca and handed it to Eastwood, who took it and immediately started to read it.

"Your employer speaks very highly of you, Mr. DeLuca," said Eastwood admiringly. "It sounds like you're a key lynchpin in his organization."

"Whatever I do, I like to do to the utmost of my abilities," said Diggle evenly.

Eastwood was watching him closely. "Well, isn't that an intriguing thought." He handed the letter to a man standing behind him, a definite accountant-looking type who no doubt handled the business transactions.

Diggle's gaze wandered to the five other people strategically dotted around the room, all obviously bodyguards, all heavily armed. Five was a lot, more than he'd been counting on and that didn't count the two at the door and it was likely that even the accountant would be packing. Diggle immediately started to re-strategize his initial plan to take into account this new variable.

Eastwood waved a careless hand at the men, noting Diggle's observation of them. "My security detail. A man in my profession can never be too careful. I'm sure you understand." His gaze became curious as he looked Diggle over again. "Although you don't seem similarly afflicted. I would have assumed someone as well-respected in your organization as yourself would have had his own security traveling with him."

Diggle gave a little shrug. "I tend to like handling things myself."

Eastwood eyed him appreciatively. "Well, that's good to know," he purred, giving Diggle a vaguely seductive look.

Diggle just smiled back at the other man's obviously interested attention, taking in this new piece of information. Apparently Heston Eastwood aka Algernon Forbes-Hamilton had an appetite for more than just making arms deals and Diggle immediately saw that as something he could turn to his advantage. Seven against one wasn't great odds, particularly when Diggle was hoping to keep this whole visit as under the radar as possible. "I believe you have a new shipment of guns that my employer might be interested in?"

"Straight to business I see," tutted Eastwood. "What's the rush? I like to get to know my business associates a little before deals are made." He batted his eyelashes at Diggle. "Why don't you take a seat and we'll get to know one another a little better? Then we can talk business."

"Don't you have other appointments lined up soon?" asked Diggle, already knowing that he did.

"No, I like to give my full attention to new clients when I first meet them. I don't like to rush things." Eastwood sent a quick look at the accountant who immediately scurried off, no doubt to reschedule those other clients as they spoke. Something told Diggle this was a pretty routine state of affairs for those working for Forbes-Hamilton. No one seemed the least bit surprised at the other man's suddenly coquettish behavior towards Diggle. Again, something he could use to his advantage. Diggle went to take a seat on a chair across from the other man but Eastwood stalled him.

"Not there," said Eastwood quickly. He looked Diggle over admiringly. "I'm not even sure that puny little chair could take all of you." He cocked his head. "Just how tall are you?"

"Six three."

"Impressive," said Eastwood approvingly.

"Can't say I had much to do with my height," said Diggle wryly. "That was more my parent's doing."

"And what fine job they did." Eastwood patted the cushion pillow beside him on the sofa. "Now then, why don't you sit by me and you can tell me how you manage to maintain that amazing physique of yours. I have a personal trainer but well, I just never seem to bulk up, no matter how hard I slave away at the gym."

Diggle could tell the other man was fishing for compliments. He took a seat beside Eastwood and half-smiled. "It's not all about bulking up. It's about endurance and flexibility too and I'm guessing you're not too shabby in those areas."

A big smile spread over Eastwood's face as he simpered at little bit at the other man's praise. "Oh, Mr. DeLuca," he said huskily, "you have no idea."

**A/N****: So yes, decided to take a little bit of a left turn with our Mr. Eastwood. It'll be interesting to see how Diggle handles himself in this situation. Whatever he does, you know he's going to look cool doing it because that is just how he rolls. Lol **

**Any guesses over who is waylaying Oliver and Felicity? Whoever it turns out to be, let's just say Oliver doesn't appreciate their proximity to Felicity in the next chapter. Stay tuned. ;) **


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N****: Some interesting guesses about who might be stopping Oliver and Felicity – you're all so creative! But the computers says no (some Little Britain humor for those in the know ;) ). I'm actually working crazy shifts at the moment and the muse isn't coping well. She's drinking heavily and hanging out with the wrong crowd. Never a good sign. But, I'll post this chapter regardless as I go into the weekend. I've got one day off in the next month, so I'm suspecting things are going to get worse before they get better. .**

**But enough generalized carry on from me. Just a heads up on the D'artagnan situation. I haven't seen Little D for a couple of days and I think he may have taken one of my baits. So, if that's the case, rest in peace D'artagnan, you fought a valiant fight but I won… so suck it! If you're still around and just gotten sneakier, then die you little bastard, DIE! **

**And on with the show…**

**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

"The lady's right. What's the rush, Queen?"

Oliver wanted to ignore the obnoxious question and keep on walking but there would be no point. Oliver forced a pleasant smile to his face as he turned around and faced the other man. "Hello, Detective Lance," he said evenly, "fancy seeing you here."

Quentin Lance looked between the two of them. "Yeah, fancy," he said flatly. Lance inclined his head towards Felicity. "Ms. Smoak… working late?"

Oliver's eyes narrowed, not liking what the older man was implying. "It's my sister's birthday," said Oliver tersely, drawing Felicity in closer to him, "and Felicity is my guest. Is there some kind of law against that now?"

Lance shrugged. "Not at all, but there is a law against being associated with a known criminal and arsonist."

Oliver's jaw hardened. "Is this part of your job now, stopping innocent passersby's and giving them random information about the law?"

Lance gave him a cold look. "My job is about justice."

"Is there something we can help you with, Detective?" asked Felicity quickly.

"I just have a couple of questions for your date," said Lance tersely.

"About what?" asked Oliver, just as tersely. He'd always understood and accepted Quentin Lance's animosity towards him and held him no malice despite the open dislike the police officer showed Oliver. But tonight Oliver's last nerve was already stretched thin and the other man was standing a little too close to Felicity for Oliver's liking. He eyed Lance warily, feeling a growing distrust about why he was even there and the way he kept looking at Felicity.

"There was an explosion at a warehouse out at the old docks last night," said Lance.

"Was anyone hurt?" asked Felicity even though she already knew the answer to her own question.

"We found one body but the coroner said the guy was already dead before the explosion. His neck was snapped."

"That's awful," said Felicity hastily, "but I'm not sure what it has to do with Oliver."

"Guess whose family was the last to own that warehouse and the surrounding ones?" asked Lance, staring down Oliver. "None other than the not so illustrious Queen family."

This was news to Oliver. "We did?" He frowned a little. "When did we sell it?"

Lance hesitated. "1951", he admitted reluctantly.

"1951?" repeated Oliver in disbelief. "Are you being serious right now?"

"We also found a bow at the scene of the crime that looks an awful like the one the Vigilante favors," said Lance, glaring at Oliver. "I bet it's got that guy's finger prints all over it. What is it with the Queens and the Hood always seeming to be crossing paths?"

"Are we back on me being the Hood?" asked Oliver in irritation. "Analyze your damn bow and check for yourself."

A muscle ticked in Lance's jaw. "We can't. The bow was… misplaced on its way to evidence."

Oliver already knew that of course, thanks to Diggle but there was a part of him which enjoyed seeing Lance being forced to admit to it. He looked the other man over. "So, let me get this straight. You're questioning me about property my family owned over sixty years ago and a bow you no longer have and frankly, only your word that it even existed in the first place."

"It existed," growled Lance. "I'm no liar."

"No, but you do seem to have a lot of time on your hands to go around making nonsensical accusations on the flimsiest of pretexts," said Oliver sharply. He felt Felicity put a hand on his arm.

"Oliver," she said warningly and then smiled brightly at Lance, obviously looking to defuse the growing tension, "I'm sure the Detective is just doing his job. No need to get upset."

Oliver looked down at Felicity, knowing she was right but the fact that she was smiling at the guy was making it hard to think clearly. He needed to get her away from Lance and his barely veiled threats. In Oliver's mind he could already see Lance trying to turn Felicity against him, taking her away from him and his muscles clenched in instinctive rebellion of that thought.

Lance shook his head in disgust. "What is it with you and always finding some poor, young woman to defend you, Queen?" He held Felicity's gaze determinedly. "You want to hear the best advice you'll ever get, Felicity? Get away from this guy. If you're lucky all he'll do is break your heart. If you're unlucky, you'll end up in my morgue one day because that seems to be the only two options for women who get involved with Oliver Queen."

_It was happening, Lance was trying to poison Felicity against him._ Oliver stepped out aggressively towards the other man, shielding Felicity with his body and ready to wipe that mocking look off of Lance's face. He shoved Lance hard in the chest, catching the other man off-guard and forcing him to stagger backwards, almost falling over. "You stay the hell away from Felicity!" Oliver yelled at him. "You don't even say her name!"

"What the hell?" spluttered a shocked Lance as he recovered his footing and was staring at Oliver in disbelief.

"I know what you're trying to do!" spat out Oliver, advancing on him once more.

Lance's hand went instinctively to the gun at his belt but Oliver wasn't worried, he knew he could disarm him before he had time to even pull the gun out.

Felicity grabbed at his waist and tried to hold him back. "Oliver, no!" she said in horror. "Aardvark! Aardvark!"

The word hit some chord in Oliver's subconscious, breaking through the cloud of reckless anger which had swamped him completely. Felicity was still clinging to his waist, trying to pull him in the opposite direction to Lance and Oliver let her, more so because he didn't want her anywhere near the older man and it didn't look like she was going to let go of him anytime soon.

"Oliver's sorry!" blurted out Felicity, holding up a conciliatory hand towards Lance, her other still around Oliver's waist. "He just had a bit too much to drink. He doesn't know what he's doing. Please don't pull a gun, please!"

Lance grimaced and took his hand off his gun but didn't take his eyes off of Oliver. "Don't worry, I'm not going to shoot your boyfriend," he said bitterly. "Although it's about what he deserves."

Oliver knew Felicity wasn't worried for his safety but that of Detective Lance's. She knew what he was capable of and how close the other man had come to being seriously hurt.

"We're just going to get in the car and go," said Felicity unevenly, throwing a quick warning look up at Oliver before looking back at Lance. "You don't need anything else from Oliver, do you?"

"A reason why he feels like he can assault a police officer without any consequences would be nice," growled Lance.

Oliver stared back at him, eyes full of menace. "How about overt harassment from the police department for no reason," he threw back.

"Look, please," said Felicity pleadingly, "this is silly. You asked your questions, Detective Lance and Oliver gave you his answers. Can we all just leave it at that and go our separate ways?"

There was a long, tense silence as both Oliver and Lance weighed up taking this further. It was Lance who broke the standoff first. He shook his head in disgust. "You got yourself a smart girl there, Queen." A cold smile touched his lips. "But you'll screw it up, you always do." With that last barb delivered Lance turned on his heel and stalked off.

Felicity let out a noisy breath once he was far enough away. "Oliver," she groaned, "that was not good."

"He started it," said Oliver sharply.

"I'm not even going to dignify that with a response," said Felicity in exasperation as she ushered him towards the car. "Come on, we need to get out of here before he changes his mind and hauls you off to jail."

Oliver's hands curled into fists at the thought. "Let him try," he growled, certain that the only reason Lance would do that was to get Felicity alone and vulnerable.

"No, we don't want that," said Felicity emphatically. They were at the car now and the valet handed the keys to Oliver.

Felicity looked over her shoulder to where Lance was standing by his car, glowering at Oliver, arms folded in front of his chest. She held out her hand for the keys. "Oliver," she hissed, "I have to drive. You're drunk, remember?" Felicity gave a jaunty little wave over towards Lance. "It's okay, no DUI's here," she called out to him. "I'm driving and completely sober."

Lance continued to stand there, obviously going to make sure that Oliver wasn't going to be driving.

Felicity pushed Oliver towards the passenger side. "Go, go around. I've got this."

Oliver threw a dark look over towards the other man and stalked around to the passenger's seat. He climbed in just as Felicity took the driver's seat.

"I need to adjust the seat," said Felicity, her feet having no chance of reaching the pedals as the chair was set back to accommodate Oliver's much longer legs. She started to fish around the side of the seat. "Where's the lever?"

"In front of you," Oliver instructed her.

Felicity reached between her legs and pulled on the release lever so that the chair would slide forward only it didn't release. She screwed up her face. "It's stuck," she puffed, sliding back and forth on the seat in an attempt to get the chair moving.

"Here." Oliver reached down between her legs and pulled hard on the lever, his other hand going to the back of the seat, pushing the chair forward.

"Oh!" said Felicity in surprise as the driver's seat shot forward to where she needed it to be. "Ah… thanks."

Oliver didn't immediately straighten up. His head was practically in Felicity's lap, his hand still on the lever of the seat and Oliver felt some of the tension from his encounter with Lance and being at the party leave him, just by being this close to her. It was like he'd run a marathon, Oliver felt sweaty and exhausted, every muscle in his body shaking. All those rampant hormones were really taking a toll on his body.

"Oliver?" said Felicity uncertainly.

"I-I just need a moment," said Oliver unevenly, finding it hard to explain the comfort being this close to her brought him. He rested his head in her lap, feeling the softness of her dress against his stubble. Felicity was wrong. Oliver had never rubbed his cheek against a cow but if he had, there was no way it'd feel this good. He felt one of Felicity's hands hesitantly touch the back of his head. Oliver closed his eyes and expelled a deep breath, feeling all the tension ebb from his body. "I'm sorry," he said contritely. "I didn't mean to lose it out there."

"It wasn't your fault, Oliver," said Felicity quickly. Her other hand was on his back now, rubbing it. "You've got this drug in your system and it's causing you to act out. This isn't you, I know that."

"Lance doesn't," he muttered.

"Well, the good news there is Quentin Lance already hates you," said Felicity, trying to look on the bright side of things. "So, you haven't done any real damage there."

"He was trying to take you away from me," groaned Oliver, burying his face in her lap at even the thought of it. "He was trying to turn you against me. Make you hate me." The thought of Felicity hating him made Oliver physically sick.

"That would never happen," said Felicity emphatically. "No one and nothing could ever make me hate you, Oliver and that's the truth of the matter."

Oliver felt an endorphin release of pleasure at hearing Felicity's sincere declaration but he still worried. His link to her felt too tenuous, like anyone could take her away from him at any moment. Oliver wrapped one arm around Felicity's waist and held onto her tightly at even the thought of something like that happening.

"Oliver," said Felicity in a low voice, "I'm going to kind of need you to sit up. People are beginning to stare."

Some part of Oliver's brain realized they weren't exactly alone and he'd been sitting with his head in Felicity's lap for a while now. People had to be wondering what he was doing but Oliver couldn't bring himself to care. Not so Felicity.

She raised her voice, obviously talking to people outside the car, probably the valets. "It's okay, I dropped an earring, he was just looking for it." Felicity pushed on Oliver's shoulder, forcing him to reluctantly sit up. Her cheeks were flushed as she tried to ignore the curious and smirking looks from the valets. Oliver could see Lance's frowning face in the rear view mirror and he scowled back at him.

"Seatbelt," said Felicity a little breathlessly as she adjusted the mirrors. "I think we really need to be not here anymore." She turned the key in the ignition and pulled away from the curb. "We need to get back to the Foundry and wait for Diggle. Hopefully he's got us a lead to find an anti-toxin for this thing." Felicity grabbed his wrist and looked at the read out on the monitor. "And in the meantime, I think we should limit the amount of exposure you have to other people. It's not great for your blood pressure."

Felicity went to remove her hand but Oliver quickly twisted his wrist and slipped his fingers between hers, holding onto her hand tightly. The coolness of her flesh against his sweaty palm felt very comforting.

Felicity quickly glanced at him, taking her eyes off the road for a moment. "Everything is going to be okay, Oliver," she promised him. "Just hang in there."

He nodded mutely, concentrating on Felicity's hand in his and blocking out every other negative thought which seemed intent on crowding his brain. Felicity was right. Everything was going to be alright.

It had to be.

**A/N****: And now they're heading back to the Arrow Cave, with Oliver feeling all emotional and fragile… I wonder if anything could happen when they're alone? And of course, we still have Diggle to catch up with. I wonder how he and Mr. Eastwood are getting on? Famously, no doubt. :D **


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N****: Hey guys, next chapter. Thank you for all the love for the last chapter. When you review, it breaks down my resolve to roll out these chapters more slowly. Lol Can't help myself. **

**Actually ended up splitting this chapter and the next and then to this chapter with the first scene. I felt like we needed to hear from Felicity. It's been a little while. Plus, you were all due a longer chapter. I wrote this last night, when I was very tired… so, just a heads up, it's possibly a little weird. I mean, it's not weird to me because it came out of me but I can never tell if others think it'd odd. It's kind of like your own farts never smell that bad to you but others usually don't agree. **

**Sorry, ten seconds in and I'm already into the butt stuff. I should really come with a health warning. **

**Oh, by the way, rat update… my dancing on D'artagnan's grave turned out to be premature. He's back. The bastard. I'm edging ever closer to the sewing up the butt fall back plan. He should just eat the poison and save us both a lot of trauma. **

**Okay, enough of my rat debacle, read the chapter and let me know what you think, hmm? **

**Toodles…**

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

Felicity concentrated on the road as she drove them back to the Foundry. Her heart was still pounding a little from their run in with Detective Lance. For a moment Felicity had been seriously worried that encounter had not been going to end well. She gave an involuntary grimace, wondering just how much worse Oliver's protectiveness of her was going to get. He was starting to see threats where there were none which made Felicity worry about just how much damage a dose that big of the XR-320 was doing to him. She felt so frustrated, like she should be able to work this out and come up with a cure herself but it was beyond her skill set and that annoyed Felicity more than she could put words to. Oliver needed her and she wasn't coming through for him. Her hands tightened on the wheel. She hated feeling this helpless.

"Take the next left," said Oliver as he reached out and put a hand on her knee. "It's quicker."

The touch of Oliver's warm hand on her leg, his fingers brushing her inner thigh caught Felicity off guard and she jerked the wheel, giving a little gasp.

"Whoa!" said Oliver, quickly grabbing the wheel with his other hand and preventing her from clipping a parked car in the street. "Careful."

"Sorry," said Felicity hastily, trying to collect her wits but Oliver's hand was still on her thigh, burning through her flesh, sending fissures of electricity up her leg and to a decidedly delicate area. "Sorry," she repeated unsteadily. Felicity sent him a flustered look. "I just wasn't expecting your hand."

"My bad, I didn't mean to grab the wheel," apologized Oliver.

"Actually, I meant your other hand." Felicity's gaze dropped to Oliver's hand which was still firmly placed on her thigh.

Oliver followed her gaze and seemed almost surprised to find his hand there. "Oh." But he still didn't move it away. There was a long pause. "Do you want me to move my hand?"

_Yes, higher._

Felicity had to take a moment to make sure she hadn't said those words aloud because in her head, she was pretty much screaming them. Oliver was poisoned, what was her excuse? Two and half years of torturous close proximity with a man who saw you more of a sister rather than an actual love interest, that was her excuse. Only she wasn't Oliver's sister because if she was, more than one of her dreams she'd had about him over the years would probably land her in jail. Felicity kept her eyes glued on the road but most of her attention was really on the fact Oliver's fingers had splayed out, encompassing more of her still tingling flesh. She swallowed hard. Diggle had told her to make sure Oliver felt calm and in control, which was fine, but what about her? Right then it was all Felicity could do not to throw herself on top of Oliver and demand that he take her right there and then. And the craziest thing was that he most likely would do just that, because, thanks to the gas, Oliver currently had a hard time saying no to her.

Felicity's hands tightened so much on the wheel her knuckles went white, watching Oliver out of the corner of her eye. He was currently leaning back against his seat, watching the scenery go by and looking incredibly relaxed. Meanwhile, Felicity felt like she was about to splinter into a thousand pieces. Supposedly she had power over Oliver thanks to the toxins in his system but why did Felicity feel as overwhelmed by him as she had on their first meeting? Of course, she did her best not to show it then or since but she knew she slipped up sometimes. Oliver needed her to protect him from himself and even though he didn't know it, he needed her even more to protect him from her. _Just don't make a big deal about this, Felicity, she warned herself sternly._ It wasn't like this was the first time Oliver had touched her after all. Her shoulders had seen a lot of Oliver action over the last couple of years. Her leg was just like her shoulder, it was the same thing. Even as Felicity tried to convince herself of that fact Oliver started to gently rub his thumb against the delicate flesh of her inner thigh. Okay, she needed to distract herself from Oliver's touches. Felicity's mind raced to come up with casual, distracting conversation. "A fire burns quicker uphill then it does down," she said suddenly, a little too loudly into the silence.

Oliver turned his head and looked at her in surprise. "It does?"

"Yes." In fact Felicity was just realizing she was finding that out first hand as Oliver's touch definitely had a fire burning very rapidly up her inner thigh. She searched for more topics of conversations. "Kangaroos have three vaginas," she blurted out. _Oh God, why did she say that? _

Oliver was now turned in his seat, looking at her with confused interest. "They do?" He titled his head. "How do you know that?"

"I've got this thing about kangaroos, I don't feel they can be trusted." She gave a nervous shrug of her shoulders. "I did a lot of research on them, a kind of 'know your enemy' thing in case I ever meet one in a dark alley."

"And how does knowing they have three vaginas help you protect against kangaroo attacks?" asked Oliver, sounding genuinely confused.

Felicity couldn't blame him. "I don't know but multiple vaginas sounds like a good place to start in a kangaroo throw down."

"I've learnt a lot of different fighting styles," said Oliver in vague amusement. "None of them have ever focused on the vagina."

_Oh God, why were they still saying the word vagina? This was a nightmare._ "Romans used to clean and whiten their teeth with urine. Apparently it really works," babbled Felicity, desperate to try and turn the tide of this conversation onto less sexy things. "Not that I've tried it you understand but boy, how many dentists would be out of business if people went back to do that, right?"

"Ah…"

Felicity realized they were still dealing with below the waist subjects and she needed to get them totally away from that area for her own sanity. "Casu marzu is a Sardinian cheese that has live maggots in it and the maggots can jump five inches out of the cheese, so it's a good idea to shield your eyes when you eat it." _Okay, you couldn't get anything less sexy than that, could you? _

"Felicity?"

"Yes, Oliver?" she replied unsteadily.

"I didn't realize there would be a general knowledge section to our date tonight," said Oliver teasingly. "I haven't really prepared anything."

Felicity sent him a quick look and blushed. "Sorry," she said uncomfortably. "I was just making conversation." _Weird conversation. _"And this isn't really a date." Felicity just had to keep reminding herself about that fact. Which would be a whole lot easier if Oliver hadn't moved his hand even higher when he turned in his seat to face her. Felicity wondered if he realized he'd done that.

"Why isn't it a date?"

Felicity threw him a surprised look. "Because it isn't. I only came to the party because you would have internally combusted if I didn't. That's not a date."

"We both got dressed up, arrived at the party together and left the same way. It's kind of a date."

Felicity blinked, not sure why he was being so insistent. "You didn't ask me out, so, it isn't a date."

Oliver was looking at her intently. "Felicity, would you like to go to my sister's birthday party with me?"

"You can't do it retrospectively," she said in exasperation. "That isn't how that works." Felicity threw him another confused look. "Why do you want this to be a date so badly?"

Oliver gave a little shrug. "I don't know. I just don't want you to not call it a date so easily."

"It's easy because it's not a date. It was more of a-umm… an errand of mercy," said Felicity quickly. She needed to keep the boundaries between them well and truly established. This wasn't a date, they both had to remember that. If they called this a date then that would mean acknowledgement of feelings between them – real on her behalf, chemically-induced on Oliver's. Nothing good could come of that.

Oliver was scowling at her. "Errand of mercy?"

"I came to Thea's birthday party to make sure you were going to be alright," said Felicity, firmly reminding herself that she was on the clock and not actually on a date with a gorgeous billionaire she was crazy about. "And the faint hope of cake." She pouted a little. "Which I didn't get… unless you count the crab cakes, which I suppose is a kind of cake, otherwise why would they call them cakes?"

"So, you're here out of pity?" asked Oliver, his face darkening.

"No, not pity," said Felicity quickly, trying to find the right word. "It's more about duty."

Oliver's scowl deepened. "Duty?"

Felicity grimaced, seeing she was upsetting him. She tried to back track. "Okay, how about this then, tonight was date adjacent."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means that while this isn't technically a date, it had enough of the typical date features that it could be in the generalized ball park of a date… without actually being called a date." Felicity gave a little nod of her head, satisfied with that explanation. "Date adjacent. That's as far as I'm willing to go on the subject, take it or leave it."

There was a brief pause. "I'll take it," said Oliver. "I'm not in love with the term which you clearly just made up—"

"Everyone's heard of date adjacent, it's a real thing," protested Felicity. "It got really big while you were on the island."

Oliver side eyed her. "Right."

Felicity didn't really have her head in the game with this discussion because Oliver's hand was still on her thigh. She just prayed he wouldn't notice the goose bumps.

"Are you cold?" he asked solicitously.

_Damn it! Why couldn't she catch a break tonight? _

Oliver rubbed her leg which only made it worse. "You've gone all goose bumpy."

"Nope, not cold," said Felicity, trying to sound offhand and casual but her voice was about two octaves too high to pull it off. "I always get goose bumps after I've eaten standing up." _For heaven's sake, what kind of lie was that?_

"What, like some kind of mild allergic reaction or something?" asked Oliver, sounding confused again.

"Yep, that's good, let's go with that," said Felicity unsteadily. _Why was this drive back to the Foundry taking so long? _

"To eating standing up?"

"It's a vaso-vagal thing," said Felicity hastily. _Change the subject, change the subject._ "I don't think your shortcut is all that short. In fact, I think it's twice as long as the way I was going to go."

"Is it?" asked Oliver mildly, not seeming to care as he settled back into his seat, fingers now rhythmically drumming her knee. "Oh well."

Felicity cast him a bemused look. Had Oliver just sent her off in the wrong direction on purpose? Why would he do that? At least he looked like he was in a far more relaxed state then when he'd first gotten into the car. That was a good thing and if Felicity could keep her mind off the fact Oliver's hand seemed to be permanently attached to her leg now, that would be even a better thing. She felt like a chocoholic who'd just been released into the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory but just before she stepped inside, she was told that she had diabetes and couldn't eat a thing. Surely the Geneva Convention had something against this kind of cruel and unusual punishment? Felicity wonder if Oliver had the slightest idea what he was doing to her. She looked over at him and Oliver turned his head and smiled easily back at her. _Nope, not a clue._

"That's a funny look," he noted. "What are you thinking?"

"That I don't get fate's sense of humor," said Felicity flatly.

Oliver gave a half-smile. "You think fate has a sense of humor?"

"Either that or she's just a bitch."

"I'm still a little light-headed. Should I know what you're talking about?"

"No, Oliver," sighed Felicity while resigning herself to the fact he never would. "Don't worry about it." Worrying was her job nowadays.

#

Diggle looked out the floor to ceiling window down onto the night vista below. "It's an impressive view," he noted.

"It certainly is," said Eastwood huskily.

Diggle turned around to see the other man walking towards him with two snifters of brandy, eyeing Diggle appreciatively. They were in the bedroom on the pretext of looking around the rest of the luxury suite. None of the bodyguards even moved to follow them and Diggle suspected they were under instructions not to be interrupted, which was kind of perfect from his point of view. He accepted the brandy.

"To new partnerships," said Eastwood, clinking his glass to Diggle's.

"Actually," said Diggle calmly, "I was thinking about old partnerships."

Eastwood gave a little laugh and took a sip of his drink. "What do you mean?"

"I mean you have something I want."

"Oh sweetheart," purred Eastwood, giving him a coquettish look over the rim of the glass, "right back at you."

Diggle took the glass from Eastwood's hand as the other man looked up at him with an expectant expression. Setting down both glasses on the side table, Diggle turned back to Eastwood, keeping his voice low. "I just want to make one thing really clear here."

Eastwood put his hand on Diggle's chest. "I like a man who knows his own mind."

"Good, because what happens next is going to be on my terms."

"Color me intrigued," said Eastwood, sidling up to him.

Diggle put his hand over Eastwood's and then grabbed two fingers. "You're going to listen to what I say and you're not going to call out."

Eastwood wiggled his eyebrows seductively at Diggle. "Well, that depends on how good you are, sweetheart."

"I'm extremely good," said Diggle evenly, taking those two fingers and bending them back enough to hurt but not break. "And you're going to give me exactly what I need otherwise it'll be the last mistake you make."

Eastwood blinked, taking in the situation and then he pursed his lips. "We're not flirting… are we?" he asked flatly.

"No, Mr. Forbes-Hamilton," said Diggle calmly, "we're not."

"Well, bollocks," said the gun dealer, looking more annoyed than worried. He looked down at his fingers trapped by Diggle's. "So, seeing as you've apparently got no particular use for my hand, may I have it back?"

"That depends if you're stupid enough to think you can call out to your men and live to make a second mistake."

The older man rolled his eyes. "You can dispense with the threats, tall, dark and handsome, I'm not interested in trading my life for a moment's heroics. I'm a business man and as a business man I know you're here because you want something from me." He gave a little wistful smile. "Unfortunately not the thing I'd hoped you wanted from me but what can one do but roll with the punches, eh?"

Diggle's eyes narrowed, trying to work out the other man's angle. Forbes-Hamilton was surprisingly calm given the circumstances and it didn't seem to be because of a false bravado. He released the grip he had on the other man's hand and inclined his head towards the chaise lounge in the corner. "Why don't you take a seat and we'll have a little chat." Diggle positioned himself between the door and Forbes-Hamilton.

"Do I get to know your real name?" asked Forbes-Hamilton casually. "I'm assuming it's not really Giovanni."

"No."

"No to the first question or the second?"

"Both."

"You look like a David to me, or a Richard, something no nonsense." He clicked his fingers. "John, you're a definite John."

Diggle didn't give anything away. "I'm interested in an associate of yours."

"I have a lot of associates, sweetheart." Forbes-Hamilton poured the second glass of brandy into his own and crossed his legs, leaning back into the couch. "You'll have to narrow it down a bit."

"Lyla Coates."

Forbes-Hamilton grimaced and rolled his eyes. "Never do business with women," he said in vague annoyance. "Broke my own rule there. The sailors of yore had the right idea when they said a woman on board was bad luck. It may be antiquated of me but I just don't see a place for them in business. I'm old-fashioned like that. They're too emotionally based." He blew out a long breath. "Or, in the case of Professor Coates, not emotional enough."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning the woman is psychotic. And not the fun kind. I've met some delightful psychopaths in my time, truly wonderful but Lyla is of the humorless variety and they're not so much fun as bowel-clenching terrifying."

"And yet you went into business with said psychopath," said Diggle tightly.

"Her ideas intrigued me," said Forbes-Hamilton wistfully. "Still do. A way to engineer mindless devotion to a leader, that could have some pretty interesting applications and personally, if that kind of mind control is out there, I'd prefer to be the one controlling it, thank you very much." He shrugged. "But that being said, even I have to draw the line somewhere. Lyla's experimentations were getting out of hand and the body count she was racking up, well, it was becoming wildly inconvenient, to say the least. There is a simple rule of business I've always lived by – you don't shit where you eat and to be frank, Lyla was burying me in the stuff. We parted ways, quite recently in fact. It was amicable enough. Well, I say amicable, she did have a little outburst and threw a spear at me. Fortunately my favorite bodyguard, Franco, was there to catch it just in time." Forbes-Hamilton wrinkled his nose. "Somewhat unfortunately he caught it with his chest and now I'm in the market for a new favorite bodyguard." He sent a hopeful look at Diggle. "I don't suppose I could entice you onto my payroll. I can assure you I'm an exceedingly generous employer."

"I'm not here job hunting," said Diggle flatly. "I need to find Coates."

Forbes-Hamilton made a disappointed tutting noise. "Let me guess… a missing friend, brother… lover?" He shook his head. "I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, my friend, but if they've crossed paths with Lyla then it's pretty much all over for them. The expression 'chewing them up and spitting them out' doesn't even begin to cover what she does with those poor unfortunates. The best thing you can do now is mourn their loss and after an appropriate amount of time, move on." He gave Diggle a charming smile. "Possibly to a slightly older, urban and witty man who can keep you in a manner to which you could easily become accustom."

"I don't need advice," said Diggle, not responding to the open flirting the man was still doing. "I just need a location."

"You're very focused, aren't you?" asked Forbes-Hamilton regretfully. "I find that both charmingly refreshing and just a tiny bit disappointing. I don't suppose it'd do me any good to tell you to leave this one alone? Trust me, when dealing with the level of insanity Lyla Coates secretes from every pore, there is no way you're not going to get more than a little crazy on your perfect self and that stuff just does not come out in the wash."

"I'll take my chances," said Diggle dismissively. "Just give me the information."

"He must be something really special," noted Forbes-Hamilton contemplatively. "You're taking a huge risk for this man when, to be frank, his fate is already pretty much sealed. Nobody walks away from an encounter with Lyla, not once she has them in her lab."

"You don't know my friend," said Diggle coolly.

"I suspect I'd very much like to but alas, I fear that will not happen. I wish you a happy ending for this story, John, I really do but the odds are well and truly stacked against you."

"Let me worry about the odds. Now, where is Coates?"

"I told you, we're no longer associated."

"You expect me to believe you're not keeping a close eye on a woman like that? Like you said, you're a businessman and that means controlling the level of exposure you have to things which can negatively impact your business dealings." Diggle arched an eyebrow. "And everything you've said tonight tells me you see Coates as someone who is potentially extremely damaging."

"I'm not going to lie, if, in any upcoming discourse you have with Lyla, you happen to find your hands around her throat, then snapping that French bitch's neck would be absolutely tickety boo by me," said Forbes-Hamilton with a smile. "In fact, I say God speed on that one." He grimaced. "Unfortunately the woman is crazy, not stupid. She's taken over the basement of Titan Tower."

Diggle grimaced at hearing that name.

"I see by your expression you're already well aware of the reputation attached to that particular high rise," said Forbes-Hamilton dryly. "It's a one stop shop for all of your drug, blood diamond, human trafficking and every other illegal need you might have. A co-op of bad guys with different business interests who have pooled their resources in an uneasy truce and a thin veil of respectability that the police won't go near. As cans of worms go, it's fifteen stories of a political and operational nightmare that the powers that be are happy enough to leave alone. And our little sociopath has plonked herself right in the bowels of the whole thing, knowing full well the security there is something even the FBI protecting the Whitehouse can only dream about."

Diggle's jaw hardened. The guy was right. This wasn't going to be easy but then, when were they ever about easy? "I don't suppose you have any tips?" asked Diggle flatly.

"Absolutely," said Forbes-Hamilton without hesitation. "Don't go. Stay here, help me finish off this most excellent brandy and then we'll see where the night takes us."

"Not going to happen."

He sighed wistfully. "I know, but hope always springs eternal." Forbes-Hamilton arched an eyebrow. "But sweetie, you really don't stand a chance and it breaks my heart to think of someone as pretty as you going off and getting yourself killed for no good reason. I detest waste."

"You've got someone on the inside with Coates, haven't you?" asked Diggle suddenly. "To keep an eye on her. There is no way you'd cut someone that unstable lose without having a little insurance policy."

Forbes-Hamilton smiled. "You see, we think alike you and me. I knew that the first moment we met."

"I want a name and a way to contact them," said Diggle seriously.

He pulled a face. "I really shouldn't be helping you to go and get yourself killed but I've always been a sucker for big brown eyes, so, I guess I can do that for you."

Diggle eyed him intently. "You're not going to raise the alarm after I go, are you?"

"Why would I?" Forbes-Hamilton shrugged. "If you succeed, you'll take care of my little French problem for me and if you don't, well, you're not going to be particularly alive to tell anyone about my connection with her in the first place. I'm really in a win/win situation here." He gave a bright smile. "But just so you know, I'm rooting for you to live in all of this and then perhaps, who knows, you might find your way back here, feeling the need to thank me for my helpfulness."

Diggle shook his head at him. "You're a strange guy, do you know that?"

"Strange or perhaps oddly compelling?" suggested Forbes-Hamilton, fluttering his eyes at him.

"I'm pretty comfortable with strange," said Diggle wryly. Tonight hadn't gone quite as he thought it would but he'd gotten the information he needed, so that was all that really mattered. "Now, you've got a name and number for me? I really do have somewhere else I need to be tonight."

Forbes-Hamilton sighed dramatically as he reached for pen and paper which was beside the bed. He started to scribble down the information Diggle needed. "We're all fools for love one way or the other, I suppose." He handed the piece of paper to Diggle but didn't immediately let go when Diggle went to take it. "I hope this man of yours knows how lucky he is to have you on his side."

Diggle pulled the piece of paper from the other man's grasp. "Thank you for your co-operation, Mr. Forbes-Hamilton. It's been appreciated."

"You can come back anytime and appreciate me again," he offered up freely. "I've got a soft spot for headstrong heroes full of romantic ideals. Soppy of me, I know, but what's a girl to do, right?"

Diggle inclined his head and glanced down at the name and number on the piece of paper. It wasn't much but it was a place to start and it was the best chance Oliver had of surviving this and that was the only thing which mattered.

**A/N****: Bet you all can't wait to use Felicity's trivia at your next dinner party. Multiple kangaroo vaginas are guaranteed to get any party started, particularly ones serving maggot cheese… or they'll ask you to leave. To be honest, it's probably a 50/50 on that one… maybe even 20/80 on being shown the door but hey, no guts no glory, right?! So, Oliver and Felicity alone in the lair next chapter… slowly slowly, catchy monkey. ;) **


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N****: Next chappy. :D **

**Been watching my stats on FF and notice things drop off around the weekend, starting Friday when I post things, regarding people checking out the story/commenting etc. It seems you guys have lives and actually do stuff on the weekend. Wow… you must tell me what that's like one day. I've heard tell of such things, social lives and all, but never come across one in the wild, roaming free, so to speak. The most exciting thing which happened to me this weekend was I got gonorrhea and not the fun way. I'm a medical scientist and I worked in the microbiology department this weekend and isolated it from a urethral swab. Pretty much the highlight of my weekend… although I suspect it'll be the low light of the guy's week when the doctor gives him the good news. Condoms, people, condoms! How hard is it? To use a condom, I mean… I wasn't asking you to think about anything else hard in that situation. There are no children in here, right? **

**Actually, that's a question I've been asking myself as I write further chapters and try to work out how graphic to make Oliver and Felicity's umm… encounters. I'm always in a quandary with that kind of stuff and ratings. I mean, I don't want to falsely advertise either way. If I call it 'M' and only have a little bit of smutty goodness throughout a fic, then people might feel gypped that they didn't get what they signed up for. But then, if I rate it 'T' and slip in a little nudge, nudge, wink, wink, say no more… then are the people who were looking for a cleaner story going to be outraged? Arghh… I have this problem all the time! **

**So, I guess I'll throw it open to the punters (that's what she said). To smut or not to smut, that is the question. Always with that kind of thing for me, it's all about the buildup and 'earning' those intimate moments between characters. I'm not into sex scenes for sex scenes sake. They have to mean something, advance the story in some way. So, how game are you guys? Happy to keep a little to the imagination or does the overwhelming majority want detailed, hot and heavy love scenes that get them all hot and bothered? **

**I shall leave it to the masses… that's you guys… no, I'm not saying you're fat… just that… when you're altogether… you have a mass kinda thing going on. I think it looks cute on you… no, I'm not being patronizing… geez, sensitive much today, guys? **

**Anyways, here's the chapter… make of it what you will… ;) **

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN**

"Careful on the stairs," Felicity cautioned him as Oliver walked down the stairs into the lair ahead of her.

"I'm poisoned, Felicity," said Oliver wryly. "Not a ninety-seven year old woman in a walking frame. I can do stairs."

"Well, you weren't so crash hot a little while ago," she pointed out, following him down.

"The car ride helped," said Oliver, getting to the bottom of the stairs and pulling at his tie, discarding it carelessly on the nearby bench top. In fact he felt great after the car trip he'd purposely extended. Being alone with Felicity was becoming like a drug to Oliver. It was hard to beat the high. It was all Oliver could do to make himself get out of the car when they'd arrived back at the Foundry.

Felicity looked at him curiously. "You mean the motion of the car is calming? Like with babies and desperate parents who are trying to stop them from crying and drive them around all night?" She pointed to a seat. "Sit down, I want to take more blood."

Oliver pulled a face as he shrugged out of his coat jacket. "I'm not ninety-seven and I'm not nine months old. It wasn't the motion of the car." He rolled up his sleeve.

Felicity collected a needle and syringe and some antiseptic wipes. "Then what was it? If we can work out what it was, we might be able to replicate it and help stop this thing from progressing."

"I know what it was and trust me, it can't be replicated."

Felicity came to stand by him. "How can you be so sure?"

Oliver caught her gaze. "Because there is only one you," he said quietly.

Felicity's eyes went a little wide. "Me?"

"Being in a confined space with you, just the two of us, no one else around," said Oliver huskily, feeling waves of wellbeing wash over him at just saying the words, "the smell of you in my nostrils, it makes me feel amazing."

Felicity's eyes went even wider. "I-I smell?" she squeaked in horror.

Oliver frowned. "No, I didn't mean it that way."

"What way did you mean it?" asked Felicity in distress. "Do I smell bad?" She pulled at her hair and sniffed.

"No, no," said Oliver quickly, trying to backtrack, "I meant smell as in you have a distinctive scent to you. I can suddenly smell you anywhere."

"I had a rat get into the crawl space of one of my apartments and die and I could smell that anywhere," said Felicity unhappily backing away from him. "Even when I left the house. It was like embedded in my nostrils. Is that the kind of smell you're talking about?"

Oliver grabbed at Felicity's arm to stop her backing up any more. "No," he said urgently, "that isn't what I mean. I'm saying this all wrong. I just trying to say I'd know your scent anywhere," finished off Oliver lamely. He was doing a bad job of explaining this. "I shouldn't have said anything."

"I girl wants to know she stinks, Oliver," said Felicity unhappily. "Preferably not from her hot boss but she still likes to know." She bit her bottom lip. "Not hot boss, just regular boss, I meant regular lukewarm boss, tepid even." Felicity rolled her eyes at her own babbling. "Maybe I smell so bad because I have verbal diarrhea, there's a theory for you."

"You don't stink," said Oliver firmly, not letting her pull away from his touch. Instead he drew her closer. "It's more like a perfume, a Felicity perfume and it smells… it smells like…"

Felicity was looking at him worriedly. "It smells like?" she prompted him.

Oliver drew her in closer again, pulling her between his legs so that scent filled his senses completely. The piquant scent made him feel almost dizzy and for a moment, Oliver lost every bit of carefully cultivated reserve he had when it came to Felicity. He leant forward a little into Felicity's neck, nuzzling at the delicate flesh there. "It smells like Christmas," he whispered, lips brushing her neck. "Like desert rain…" Oliver couldn't stop himself from trailing his lips up to her jawline, tasting the intoxicating scent embedded in her skin for himself. Now that he'd experienced the first taste of the self-imposed forbidden fruit, Oliver couldn't bring himself to stop. "You smell like coming home." Their eyes met, his lips poised above hers. Felicity was just staring at him at him, seemingly unable to move. "You smell like how I imagine you taste," Oliver rasped, eyelids drooping. Felicity was all around him, enveloping him, making him drunk on the feeling of her in his arms. Oliver brushed his lips against hers, the lightest of touches and Felicity gave a little shudder in his arms. He felt like if he didn't kiss her now, he was going to die. "Felicity," he whispered, her name a sigh of longing against her lips.

"This-this isn't what you want," stammered Felicity, looking torn as she tried to move away and break the spell between them.

Oliver's hands came up to hold onto Felicity's waist, stopping her from pulling away. "It's the only thing I want," he said hoarsely.

Felicity squeezed her eyes close and seemed to be steeling herself. "It's the drug talking, not you."

Oliver's hands slipped down to cup her bottom cheeks, loving the way they seemed to fit perfectly into his hands, as though they were designed precisely for that one reason. "You're my drug," he argued with her. Oliver's body was a riot of sensation. Every nerve ending was tingling, the blood was humming in his veins. He'd never felt more alive. Oliver didn't let Felicity argue with him anymore. Relinquishing one perfect bottom cheek, Oliver slipped his hand into Felicity's hair, cupping the back of her head and drawing her closer to him. He claimed her lips in a kiss which sent fireworks off all over his body. The taste of her exploded inside his mouth and Oliver was instantly addicted. He'd been right, Felicity was definitely his drug of choice. His tongue slipped into her mouth, eager for more of her sweetness and Oliver heard a loud, groaning noise and realized it had come from him. He tightened his hold on the back of Felicity's head and her bottom, wanting her even closer to him. Even pressed up against him like this it wasn't close enough, Oliver needed to be closer to her, to absorb Felicity into every part of him. "Oh God," he groaned against her lips, "Felicity, I need you so badly."

Suddenly Felicity was struggling in his arms. She put her hands up to his chest and pushed away from him as hard as she could. "No!" she gasped.

Oliver was forced to let her go or risk hurting her. "Felicity," he said fiercely, feeling bereft as she stumbled away from him. Oliver's entire body was throbbing as he held out a pleading hand to her, needing her back so they could continue those mind numbingly good kisses. "Felicity, please, don't. I need you."

"You do need me," panted Felicity, looking completely frazzled. "You need me to be the sane one." She put a shaking hand to her head. "This can't happen. This shouldn't be happening." Her face balled up. "I'm the worst person in the world."

Oliver stood up and took an urgent step towards her. "Don't say that," he said sternly.

Felicity took a couple of hasty steps backwards, holding up her hand to ward off his advances. "Oliver, you don't know your own mind. You're confused and drugged and we can't do this," said Felicity in distress. "I can't do this. It's just wrong."

Oliver hated hearing her say something like that. Kissing her had been the only thing which had felt right since this whole nightmare had begun and it had been better than every daydream he'd had about what kissing Felicity would be like. He stood up and advanced on her. "This isn't wrong, Felicity," said Oliver sharply. "Don't say that."

"Oliver," she groaned, "of course it is. You're not yourself."

"How can you say that?"

"Because the real Oliver Queen doesn't want me like that and never will," said Felicity in dismay. She turned abruptly away from him, wrapping her arms around her waist protectively.

Oliver wanted to argue with her, to tell her that what he was feeling wasn't because of the drug. The only thing the toxin in his system had done was remove his willpower to hold back that side of his emotions when it came to Felicity. Before he could say anything, Felicity drew in a deep, uneven breath and turned around. "It's alright, Oliver," she said resolutely. "You're going to be fine. This is going to go away, I promise you. Once we find a cure for the toxin in your system, you'll see everything clearly again."

It was on the tip of his tongue to say the drug had given him clarity rather than taken it away when it came to her but he wasn't sure Felicity would believe him. The one thing Oliver could see clearly right then was that he'd frightened Felicity with the force of his feelings for her and he immediately felt intense regret. He couldn't do this to her, it wasn't fair. "Felicity, I'm so sorry," he said unevenly. "I never meant—"

"I know," she interrupted him. Felicity gave him a vaguely flustered look which she tried to make reassuring. "Oliver, none of this is your fault. The XR-320 is affecting your entire system. I know this isn't the real you." She pressed her lips together and seemed to be collecting herself. Felicity nodded at the chair behind him. "Go and sit down, I'll take that blood now." Felicity went and retrieved fresh supplies seeing as she'd dropped the last lot at some point during their heated kisses.

Oliver slowly turned around and sat back down. He was caught between needing Felicity near him so he didn't feel like he was going to die but the sting in that tail was that when she was too close, Oliver lost every bit of the self-control he'd worked to maintain around her in the last few months. It was a fine line to walk but Oliver couldn't have Felicity look at him again with that kind of dismay.

Felicity went to walk towards him and then hesitated. "Umm…"

"I'm not going to try anything, Felicity," said Oliver quickly. "It's okay." It was tearing him up inside to see Felicity so uncertain around him all of a sudden. Oliver didn't blame her. He'd basically gone from zero to a hundred with where their relationship was at currently with that last move. It'd had felt like the most natural thing in the world to Oliver but it was obvious Felicity didn't feel the same way. "I'm in complete control of myself, I promise." That wasn't completely true Oliver discovered as Felicity walked up to him after another brief hesitation. Oliver could feel his heart begin to beat so loudly in his chest that he was afraid Felicity might hear it. Despite the effect she was having on him, Oliver remained resolutely still as she pushed his rolled up sleeve further up his arm. Felicity wiped down the skin over his inner elbow and then went to take the blood but her hands were shaking so badly that she was in danger of turning him into a pin cushion. "Felicity," said Oliver frowning, reaching out and putting a hand over her shaking one.

Felicity grimaced and took a step back, breaking contact with him. "You know, maybe I'll take the blood later." She hurried back to the medical trolley and replaced the items for later use.

"Felicity," said Oliver unhappily. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make this weird between us."

"It's not weird," said Felicity hastily. "It's totally not weird. Why would you say that?"

Oliver could see she was lying, he didn't need the question after it to tell him that. "I never meant to scare you."

Felicity gave a sharp laugh and shook her head, looking away. "You didn't scare me. I scared me."

Oliver stood up, intending to walk over to her but then decided that might not be something Felicity wanted, so he just stood there. "What do you mean?"

Felicity wrinkled her nose and gave him a reluctant look. "Oliver, you know how you always give out Christmas bonuses to me and Diggle even though I'm Jewish… which I suppose technically makes them a Hanukah bonus for me… although that doesn't quite have the same ring to it." She shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut. "Not the point, stay on task, Smoak."

"What is your point?" asked Oliver a little uncertainly.

Felicity opened her eyes and fixed Oliver with a vaguely desperate look. "Can we do a deal where I give up my bonus this year rather than have to answer that question?"

"But you just answered it," said Oliver in consternation.

"No," said Felicity in exasperation, "not that question, the question before it."

"The scared one?"

"Yes."

"I'll give up my bonus if you don't make me answer that question." Felicity made a frustrated sound. "Although technically that isn't much of an incentive because it's your money in the first place and you're a bazillionaire and you probably found that money down the back of your sofa anyways." Her eyes went a little wide. "Not that it isn't an incredibly generous amount to us non-bazillionaires, of course. I'm not saying that. I'm just saying I probably shouldn't offer your own money back to you that you don't even need as a tradeoff." Felicity paused briefly and then clicked her fingers. "I know, I'll stop stocking up the fridge in here with full fat milk and telling you its low fat."

"It is low fat milk," said Oliver. "It says so on the carton."

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, about that… I decant the good stuff into a low-fat milk carton so you won't know. It's a good thing you're not one to check the expiry dates on thing."

Oliver blinked. "Seriously?"

"That low-fat stuff is disgusting. You can't make a good coffee or a hot chocolate with the stuff and those two beverages are the only things which get me through all the all-nighters I've pulled in this place."

"I drink gallons of the stuff," protested Oliver. "It's not that bad."

"You're drinking the full fat milk," Felicity reminded him. "Of course it tastes alright."

"You told me they'd come up with a new product of low fat milk which tastes just like regular milk while I was away on the island," said Oliver, remembering their discussion on the subject quite clearly.

"Yeah, that was a lie," said Felicity without hesitation. "Bare faced, pants on fire, nose grew five inches lie. Nothing low fat tastes as good as the full fat version. It's physically impossible. It's like those lunatics who say that carob is a substitute for chocolate." She gave an inelegant snort. "That's like saying getting your penis caught in your zipper is a substitute for sex. There is _no_ comparison." She pursed her lips. "I'm assuming… not having a penis and all but if I did, I wouldn't want it caught in anything."

"Why didn't you just buy both, the low fat and regular?" asked Oliver in consternation. He was down the rabbit hole with this conversation but just like Alice, he couldn't stop himself from following his adorably off-beat White Rabbit down into Wonderland.

"Oh right," said Felicity mockingly, "I'm going to sit there, chugging down the full fat stuff like a walrus trying to put on an extra layer of blubber for the oncoming winter while you and Diggle sip away on the low fat version as you hone your bodies to chiseled perfection in front of me. Yeah, no, I think not."

Oliver scowled. "You think Diggle is chiseled perfection?" He knew that wasn't the point of Felicity's mini-rant but it was the thing which stood out to him… and bothered the hell out of him.

"I _think_ one of the squirrels in my yard is breaking into my house when I'm not there and drinking from the toilet," said Felicity. "I _know_ Diggle is ridiculously cut. You both are."

Oliver was having trouble keeping up with this conversation. There were too many questions in his head. "Why would a squirrel drink from your toilet?"

Felicity shrugged. "I guess he hasn't figured out how a faucet works."

Oliver put an unsteady hand to his head at their strange conversation which kept going around and around. "You're making me dizzy, Felicity."

"I think that's the aftereffects of the XR-320," said Felicity solicitously.

"No, it's the aftereffects of a conversation with you," said Oliver a little dazedly.

Felicity grimaced. "Sorry."

"It wasn't a complaint," said Oliver sincerely, dropping his hand away from his head. "I never know where a conversation with you is going to go. It's kind of like going on one of those mystery flight. You know where you started but you have no idea where you're going to end up."

"Again, sorry."

Oliver shook his head at her. "I like surprises."

Felicity arched an eyebrow at him. "No, you don't."

"Okay," he conceded, "I don't but when it comes to you I'm developing the taste for them."

"Umm… thank you," said Felicity hesitantly, "I guess." Behind her, Felicity's lap top suddenly gave a low tone. She swung around and hurried up to it. "I'm through the military firewall," she said in delight. "We can find out more about what Coates was up to when she was working with them, see if she was developing an anti-toxin to go with the gas."

Oliver came up behind her as Felicity took a seat at her desk, fingers already tapping away at the keyboard and navigating her way around. The pale expanse of her back and neck was on display. Oliver's eyelids drooped a little. _Don't kiss her neck, don't kiss her neck. _He repeated the mantra to himself in his head, trying to keep a tight lid on his wayward libido when it came to Felicity. Oliver was trying his best to keep things normal between them after Felicity's little outburst but his head was still spinning from those kisses. Only Felicity didn't believe it was because of her but rather the stupid gas. Oliver's jaw hardened. If only she knew how often he'd thought about kissing her before all of this started, especially the last couple of months. But he'd been so determined not to muddy the waters between them he'd kept his feelings to himself. And now that particular act of nobility was coming back to bite him in the ass big time. She thought his kissing her was all about the gas. _How could she think that? _Because you gave her that dumbass speech at the abandoned warehouse where you said they'd should basically ignore those moments between them up until then. _Dumbass._ Why hadn't he just told Felicity that he had feelings for her then and there? Sure, he hadn't actually put a label on them but at least it would have been out there and introduced the groundwork to build something on because right now he had nothing. Only Oliver had hesitated because Diggle had told him to be sure and Oliver had been avoiding really giving his feelings about Felicity the room they needed. It was only now, when she was pulling away from him, Oliver was being galvanized into realizing he didn't want that, not ever. Before their relationship had been in this kind of status quo and Oliver knew Felicity thought it was the gas which had changed that but it wasn't. It was the fact that she was deliberately pushing him away that had Oliver reeling as he realized how that made him feel. She was keeping him close but putting up a barrier between them. Just like he'd done with her for the last two years… and it was driving him crazy.

"See, we're in and there is a whole heap of information in these files. Surely some of them are going to help us with your situation."

Oliver dragged his attention back from his internal turmoil and onto the screen in front of him. He looked over her shoulder as Felicity started to open up different files. "The first good news of the night," said Oliver grimly, praying they'd find some useful information in amongst all the files Felicity was currently trolling through. Once he had this gas out of his system, one way or the other, then he and Felicity could talk properly and she wouldn't be able to use the XR-320 as an excuse about what was happening between them. What had always been happening between them, if he was honest. He knew he used to have reasons why acknowledging that something between them was a bad idea but he couldn't remember what even one of them was now. So really, how much of a reason could they have actually been?

"And here is the second."

They both turned their heads to see Diggle trotting down the stairs. "I've got a location on Lyla Coates, courtesy of our visiting arms dealer."

Oliver straightened up. "You didn't have any problems?"

Diggle came to stand in front of him. "No, Mr. Eastwood was surprisingly helpful."

Oliver frowned a little. "Can we trust him?"

"I think so. Just like the military, he was trying to put some distance between himself and the special brand of crazy which Professor Coates seems to emanate. Truth be told, I think he'd be happy if we took her out."

Felicity twisted in her seat. "Is that what we're going to do?" she asked worriedly. "Kill her?"

Oliver and Diggle exchanged looks.

"It's not our primary objective," said Diggle calmly, "but one way or the other, this woman and her testing on human beings is going to stop." He looked at Oliver. "After we've gotten as much information as we can on some kind of neutralizing agent for this toxin."

"And if there isn't one?" fretted Felicity, casting an anxious look towards Oliver.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," said Oliver firmly, sounding more certain than he felt. He rubbed the back of his neck, feeling the first niggle of that headache returning. There had to be some kind of cure for this, there had to.

**A/N****: Just a little tease with this chapter when it comes to Olicity but I hope it allays any fears people might have that Oliver's feelings about Felicity are because of the gas. They're not, trust me. Lol The trouble is, how is he going to convince Felicity of that and if you were Felicity, would you really believe Oliver was enough in his right mind to know for sure? Yup, as conundrums go, it's a prickly one. **

**Interested to hear your thoughts on the love scenes going forward. I would put the one above as about a 2 on the flaming panty rating. That scale goes up to 12 for those who aren't acquainted with the FPR system. This was mild but kind of fitting in with how far the CW take their love scenes, at least on Arrow. Okay with that level, or are you up for more? I will follow your lead. ;) **


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N****: Thank you one and all for your feedback about the FPR for this story. You've given me a lot to ponder and I shall do just that. I think the main thing is that I always want to keep my smut, whatever level, tasteful and in character. I don't see Felicity breaking out the whips and chains in the bedroom so I'd never have her doing that. I also don't see her as one to talk dirty, funnily flirty, maybe, but not dirty. ;) So yeah, I'll see how it pans out as I go along but it was uber helpful to hear everyone's thoughts on the subject, so thank you again for that. :D I'm here to please and entertain, so all input is welcome. **

**Just on a side note from my last A/N's, I just want to make it very clear that I do NOT have gonorrhea! lol Syphilis, sure, but not gono. (Okay, I don't have syphilis either, promise – Hank on the other hand, man, he's his very own Center for Disease Control… or maybe that should be Out-Of-Control). I isolate bacteria for a living and so far have managed not to infect myself with anything. Yay me! So yeah, just wanted to clear that up… which is ironic because that is pretty much what people with gono want too. Lol Ah well, don't do the crime if you can't do the time… and the itching ooze. **

**I fear you will find this chapter quite the come down after the last one. It's inevitable. So, sorry in advance about that. And the next one won't be much better, it'll be heavy on setting up the next part of this story but exposition is a necessary evil in a story, so I'll try and make it as quick as possible. **

**I think I had something else to tell you but Hank is out taking a quick cigarette break and let's pray that it's just tobacco in that cigarette this time. I know, you're all thinking the alternative is wacky tabacky… aka weed. Man, I wish. Last time I did a routine cell inspection, I found he was making cigarettes out of pubic hairs. I was going to ask him where he got the pubes from because monkeys don't have any, unless you count their whole bodies but then decided I didn't really want to know. I think when you've got a sociopathic, alcoholic, sexually transmitted disease-ridden monkey running around in your head, you should probably try and maintain a thin veil of mystery between the two of you. I don't ask about his pubic hair-based cigarettes and he doesn't ask me about the life-size cutout of the Pillsbury Doughboy mascot smeared in honey in my bedroom. It's a mutually agreeable arrangement. **

**And on that note (I think it was a C sharp), I'll leave you with some alone time with the chapter. Now then, make good choices, you two… just leave the door open so I can check up on your periodically... our family doesn't need another pregnancy scare… particularly as I'm still trying to work out how Hank could get that Elmo doll in the family way in the first place… I always thought Elmo was a dude… possibly a castrated one with that high pitched voice of his but still a guy… but as always with Hank, he found a way… **

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN**

"So, how are you really doing?"

Felicity didn't look up from the computer screen as she continued to make her way through the reams of information and files pertaining to Project Sirène. "Fine." They'd all bunked down for the rest of the night, Oliver saying he only needed a little shut eye but they'd ignored his request to wake him after fifteen minutes. They'd all needed sleep but in the end Felicity had woken very early and started work on the XR-320 files. She needed to know as much as she could about what might be in store for Oliver.

"Felicity?"

Felicity sighed heavily as she heard the tone in Diggle's voice, knowing he wasn't going to let it go. She sat back in her chair and looked up at the other man. "I'm a horrible person, Digg." It was the other reason she couldn't sleep – a guilty conscience.

Diggle half-smiled. "As someone who has met his fair share of horrible people, I can unequivocally say that is not true." He sat on the edge of her desk and looked down at her. "What happened last night? Did something happen at the party?"

"No." Felicity wrinkled her nose. She glanced over her shoulder to where Oliver was still sleeping behind a partition. "Yes, a bit. Oliver got a little overprotective of me with one of the guys at the party and Thea saw it. Heaven only knows what she is thinking now."

"I don't think Thea is someone we need to be worrying about."

"And then Oliver did it again with Detective Lance, outside the party," said Felicity unhappily. "He almost decked the guy, or worse."

Diggle frowned. "Why?"

Felicity shook her head. "I don't know. I think he thought Detective Lance was trying to turn me against him. It didn't really make sense but Oliver almost had a gun pulled on him."

"Lucky for Lance that didn't happen," said Diggle dryly.

"Yeah, we dodged a bullet there, literally and figuratively," grimaced Felicity. "Didn't really need Oliver going all 'eye of the tiger' on the one guy who is looking to make a link between the Hood and Oliver Queen."

"But you kept the situation in control," noted Diggle. "That's the important thing."

"Yeah," said Felicity flatly, "but then I really dropped the ball."

Diggle tilted his head. "How so?"

Felicity bit her bottom lip and blushed. "I-I sexually harassed Oliver, when we got back here to the lair." The ride back in the car had already completely discombobulated Felicity but when Oliver had started kissing her, she was pretty certain she'd lost her mind for a good few minutes.

Diggle's eyebrows shot up. "You what?"

Felicity made an unhappy groan. "I don't know what happened. We were back here, waiting for you and just talking. Then Oliver tells me he can smell me." She wrinkled her nose. "Can you smell me? Do I have a funk to me?"

Diggle shook his head. "You definitely don't have a funk, Felicity."

"Well, Oliver says he can smell me, that I've got some kind of scent he can pick up anywhere and the next thing I know he's kissing my neck and then we're suddenly kissing and instead of me pulling away right then, I just let it happened." Felicity squeezed her eyes close and groaned in embarrassment. "I totally took advantage of the fact Oliver is out of his mind." She looked up at Diggle wide eyed. "How does that not make me a bad person?"

"Felicity," said Diggle kindly, "none of this is your fault. You didn't start any of this."

"Either did Oliver," said Felicity in agitation. "But that doesn't give me the right to take advantage of him."

Diggle shook his head. "I find it really hard to believe that is how it went down somehow. And besides, you stopped it, didn't you?"

"Yes," said Felicity in a small voice, "but it took way longer than it should have and when this is all over all Oliver is going to remember is that I let him do something he didn't really want to do because-because—" She trailed off, not really wanting to complete that sentence but it seemed she didn't need to for Diggle.

"Felicity," he said softly, "I know how hard this must be for you. I know how you feel about Oliver."

She squirmed a little in her seat and resolutely refused to meet Diggle's gaze. "Is it really that obvious?" Felicity made a face. "Don't answer that. I don't want to know." It was mortifying to think that she was so obvious about her feelings for Oliver. Not for the first time, Felicity wished she had just a little bit more guile to her nature.

"I know you care for him a lot," said Diggle quietly. "This can't be an easy position you've been put in to."

"What, having Oliver look at me like I'm the only girl in the world for him, have him need me more than anyone else, want me the most and know that it's all chemically induced and none of its real?" she asked bitterly. "No, that isn't hard at all, why would you say that?"

"Would you like my opinion on all of this?"

"Only if it'll make me feel better," said Felicity morosely. She still couldn't believe how far she'd let things get between her and Oliver last night. It was just when he was touching her and saying those things to her, Felicity had found herself just freefalling, caught up in the moment just as much as Oliver had been only she didn't have the excuse of being drugged… just lovesick. And Felicity already knew there wasn't an antidote for that particular malaise. "Talk about folie à deux."

"Excuse me?" asked Diggle quizzically.

Felicity sighed. "A few years back there was this case of these Swedish twin sisters who were found throwing themselves in front of oncoming traffic on an English freeway. They resisted all attempts to save them, one of them actually throwing themselves under a truck and the other one attempting to do the same. They both survived but when there was more investigation, they found out one of the sisters had killed a man who had only tried to help her and neither sister would ever give a reason for their behaviour - folie à deux, a madness shared by two." She swallowed hard. "That's Oliver and me. He's drugged and disoriented, throwing himself under trucks with gay abandon and instead of helping him, I'm joining in." Felicity buried her head in her hands. "I'm a horrible, horrible human being, Digg, and when Oliver comes out of all of this, he's going to hate me." She hadn't lied when she'd told Oliver that she'd scared herself with what had happened between them. For a few crazy seconds Felicity had entertained the idea of letting things go further between the two of them. Hearing him groan his need for her had been almost her undoing but then Felicity had forced herself to remember that this wasn't the real Oliver talking. She felt Diggle put a comforting hand on her back.

"This I know for sure," said Diggle firmly, "Oliver is incapable of hating you, Felicity, so you should stop worrying about that right now."

Felicity dropped her hand away from her face. "Well, he should," she said emphatically, "because apparently I'm some kind of sexual predator." Diggle gave a short bark of laughter and Felicity glared up at him. "How is that funny?"

Still smiling, Diggle shook his head at her. "Honey, of all the things you are, I don't think you can claim sexual predator as one of them. You were in a difficult situation and you did the right thing and Oliver is going to remember that. Which brings me back to my original opinion about all of this. Still want to hear it?"

"I'll tell you after I hear what it is," said Felicity unevenly.

Diggle crouched down in front of Felicity, so they were at eye level. "I think that part of the reason Oliver is having such a hard time with you being the one the gas has made him fixate on is because, well, he already had pretty intense feelings about you going into all of this."

"That isn't true, Digg," sighed Felicity, wishing that it was. "That's how he feels about Laurel or even Sarah but not me. Oliver just sees me as a friend and partner. He's never thought of me romantically and the only reason he is now is because of the XR-320. It's not real. Whatever he thinks he feels about me, it's just not real and I have to remember that and not get sucked into his whirlpool of crazy and start believing anything else." Felicity grimaced. "Otherwise we're both going to drown."

"Are you telling me that you and Oliver never had any little moments between the two of you before all of this started?" countered Diggle.

Felicity rolled her eyes. "The guy is sex on stick, Diggle. He's going to have a sexual spark with just about anyone or anything. Heck, he and the salmon ladder are practically engaged. It doesn't mean anything other than Oliver is a really gorgeous guy who puts out a lot of sexual energy."

Diggle pulled a face. "I'm pretty confident in saying that Oliver sees you in a whole different light to his salmon ladder, Felicity."

Felicity moved her shoulders restlessly. "Yeah, well, whatever that light is, I know it's not me being his dream girl. So, I just have to remind myself of that every time he makes me feel like I'm more than just a friend to him." She bit her bottom lip. "No matter how convincing he is at the time."

"Felicity, you're incredibly important to Oliver, you have to know that."

"I know, he couldn't keep this show on the road without me," said Felicity. "Team Arrow needs its computer geek."

Diggle gave her an intent look. "You know that isn't what I meant."

"What I know is that Oliver isn't in his right mind at the moment and that he needs me to look out for his best interests and not indulge myself with some stupid fantasy that he could ever—" Felicity took a deep breath. "I just don't want Oliver to hate me at the end of all of this."

"Not going to happen," said Diggle confidently.

Felicity gave him a worried look. "There is going to be an end to all this though, right? Oliver is going to get through this."

"Of course he will," said Diggle without hesitation.

She gave a wobbly smile. "You always tell the best lies."

Diggle half-smiled. "I'm pretty good with the truth as well."

Felicity moved forward and wrapped her arms around Diggle's neck where he was still crouched in front of her. She hugged his broad frame, finding it incredibly comforting. "I'm so lucky to have you in my life, Digg," she said sincerely. "I don't know if I ever told you that before but I am."

Diggle returned her hug. "That happens to work both ways. Oliver and I are both lucky to have you in our lives."

Felicity pulled back and tried to blink away the tears she'd been attempting to hold back. She needed to change the subject. "How much longer do you think we should let Oliver sleep for?"

Diggle glanced at his watch. "Maybe another hour or so? I've got to call in a couple of favours so I can get to this Lyla woman without setting off any of her alarm bells. She's obviously very use to flying under the radar and this building she's holed up in has a lot of security."

"Those reactions Oliver is having are taking a huge physical toll on his body," fretted Felicity. "If it was anyone else they'd probably already need to be hospitalized." She glanced back over her shoulder. "I'm not sure how much more his body can take if we don't keep him calm."

"Well, that's our game plan for now," said Diggle. "Keep Oliver calm while I work out a way into Professor Coates' latest fortress of human rights violations."

"You really need my help with that. If you tell me where she's at I can screen the building for access points."

"Right now I'd rather you concentrate on Oliver," said Diggle calmly. "I can handle everything else."

Felicity pulled a face, wanting to argue but decided on a sideways approach. "Let me just get these last couple of files open and see what's inside of them," said Felicity, turning back around to her computer console. "Who knows, they might even have an anti-toxin formula in one of them and you don't have to go anywhere."

"I always did love your optimism," said Diggle wryly.

"Yeah, well, a girl can dream, right?" she muttered, turning her attention back to the files on her computer screen and attempting to access them. Whatever was hidden away in them must be important because they were the most heavily protected files she'd come across since breaching the initial firewall. Hopefully there really was an antidote tucked away in there after all.

**#**

Oliver jerked awake as he felt a hand touch his arm. He was instantly on the defensive, smacking it away.

Diggle held up a conciliatory hand. "Whoa, man, it's just me, relax."

Oliver sat up on the rudimentary bed and shook his head to clear it. He ran an unsteady hand through his hair. "How long have I been asleep for?" he asked unevenly.

"Awhile. It's morning."

Oliver scowled at him. "I said give me fifteen minutes."

"You needed longer," said Diggle unapologetically as he took a seat on the edge of the bed. "And besides, we all needed to get some sleep and Felicity wanted to look through all the files she found on Project Sirène before we make our next move."

Felicity's name on the other man's lips had Oliver tensing and then he realized something. "You're covered in her," he bit out, eyes darkening.

Diggle looked at him blankly. "What?"

"Felicity," he growled, "I can smell her all over you." Oliver felt his whole body begin to shake, his hands curl into fists. "What the hell have you been doing to her?"

"I-ah, nothing," said Diggle, clearly taken aback. "Damn, so you really can smell her anywhere?"

Diggle wasn't answering his questions and that was making Oliver more certain something was wrong. "Did you hurt her?" He grabbed the front of Diggle's shirt and shoved the man backwards. An unprepared Diggle slid off the bed and fell onto the ground. "What did you do?" Oliver yelled. "What did you do?" Oliver jumped up from the bed, the blood roaring in his ears. "Felicity!" He went to race back to the main computer area but Felicity suddenly popped up in front of him.

"What's wrong?" she asked a little breathlessly. Felicity looked past Oliver to see Diggle on the ground. "Digg, are you alright?" She moved towards him but Diggle quickly put up a hand.

"Don't come any closer," said Diggle hastily. "Don't move!"

Felicity froze, her eyes going wide. "Please tell me there isn't a bomb in this room," she said, looking stricken.

Diggle gave a concerned look at Oliver. "Potentially."

Oliver put his arm around Felicity's waist and drew her further away from Diggle, his gaze raking over every inch of her. "Did he hurt you?"

Felicity looked at him blankly. "Did who hurt me?"

Oliver threw a dark look over his shoulder at Diggle, keeping himself protectively between the other man and Felicity. "Diggle."

Felicity blinked. "What, _that_ Diggle?" she pointed to where Diggle was now sitting on the edge of the bed, watching Oliver warily. "John Diggle, _our_ John Diggle? Why on earth would Digg hurt me?"

The confusion in Felicity's voice was throwing Oliver off. When he'd smelt her scent all over Diggle he'd been so sure that the other man had done something to her, tried to hurt her. It was Oliver's first instinct and his instincts were never wrong… but now he wasn't so sure.

Felicity put her hand on his arm. "Oliver, you know Diggle wouldn't ever hurt me. He's our friend and he's always looking out for the both of us. You know that."

Oliver blinked a couple of times, trying to clear the fog in his brain. Felicity's calming touch helped. The red mist started to clear and Oliver grimaced. "I-I thought Diggle had hurt you," he said unevenly. "I could smell you all over him."

Felicity made a face. "You can smell me on people now?" she asked in distress. "Just how bad is this smell of mine?"

"It's not bad," said Oliver fiercely, not sure why Felicity was so determined to believe otherwise. "I just know your scent and Diggle is covered in it."

"Probably because we hugged earlier."

"Felicity," said Diggle in a cautionary tone, "maybe Oliver doesn't want to hear that."

Oliver scowled as Diggle stood up, his face flushing in anger. "What are you trying to keep from me?" His glare deepened. "Is that why you let me sleep so long? So you could be alone with Felicity and try and take her away from me?" Oliver could just picture Diggle whispering in Felicity's ear, trying to turn her against him. It was so clear in his mind's eye, it was like he'd actually seen it happen. A hot rage surged through Oliver's body.

"Oliver," said Diggle calmly, "you need to take a moment and think this through. You know I'm not trying to do anything with Felicity other than help you. Like Felicity said, we're all on the same side… your side. You're just losing a little perspective here."

"You'd like Felicity to think that, wouldn't you?" Oliver growled. "You want her to think I'm crazy so you can have her all to yourself." He bristled at even the thought of it.

"Nobody is calling anybody else crazy," said Felicity hastily. "But Diggle is right, perhaps we should all just take a moment and stay calm." She gave him an earnest look. "Aardvark, Oliver, aardvark."

"Aardvark?" asked Diggle in confusion.

"It's our safe word," explained Felicity quickly, not breaking eye contact with Oliver. "It's our code to let the other one know that things might be getting a little, you know, hinky."

Oliver swallowed hard, staring back down into Felicity's concerned gaze. With all of her attention on him, Oliver felt himself being able to think clearly again. He looked back at Diggle and made a contrite face, the anger seeping from his body as quickly as it had arrived. "John, I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking." Oliver rubbed the back of his neck. "It's just that you suddenly felt like the enemy." He was having a lot of trouble controlling his emotions, they just overtook him without warning. Oliver felt helpless against them.

"Which we're all going to agree I'm not," said Diggle evenly.

"No, of course not," said Oliver hoarsely. He shook his head. "I just can't get these thoughts out of my head sometimes."

"It's the XR-320," said Felicity sympathetically. "Digg and I understand, you don't have to explain. You've got a lot of hormones running through your body right now and that isn't always great for a clear thought process."

"But I need to be able to think clearly," bit out Oliver in frustration.

"How about you let us pick up the slack on this one," said Diggle easily as he went to walk by the two of them. "Felicity has opened the last files—"

Diggle was suddenly too close to Felicity for Oliver to handle. The threat to Felicity was too real, she was actual and imminent danger from the other man, Oliver could just feel it. He had to protect her, it was the only thing which mattered. Before Oliver knew what he was doing, he had a nearby knife in his hand and pressing it up against Diggle's neck. "What are you doing? Stay away from Felicity!" he spat out, shoving his face aggressively into Diggle's. "Move and I'll kill you!" Oliver's hand tightened on the knife as he pressed the blade harder against Diggle's throat…

**A/N****: R'oh, R'ho… trouble at Team Arrow's love nest. I know what you're thinking, I wouldn't really let Oliver cut Diggle's throat but then again, I did talk about pubic hair cigarettes in the intro… do you really see me as someone with limits? I will say this and it is absolutely true… the next chapter contains a blood-letting of some pretty serious proportions. It ain't gonna be pretty… you have been warned… *insert dramatic music here* **


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N****: Okay, I keep meaning to ask this question and then forget. **

**Do people mind that I try and reply to most of the reviews I get for this story, as best I can? I'm never sure about the etiquette of that. I feel like when people review they're talking to me and it seems incredibly rude to not respond. It's like you're walking in the street and someone calls out your name and you duck off into a shop to avoid them. Hank and I already have to do that with a lot of people – most officers of the law, nuns, the local pre-schoolers… to be fair though, those pre-schoolers have a right to be angry. What Hank did in their sand pit was more than a touch out of order. And I tell you, four year olds, on mass, are a terrifying force of nature. **

**So yeah, just let me know if I'm bugging you with answering your reviews, won't you? I don't want to be a burden… you know, any more than I am already, of course. Lol **

**Okay, this chapter. I'll be honest. It's not my favourite. I can't tell you what about it bugs me other than it just does. I hope you won't find it too tedious. Alrighty then, I've just gotten home from a very big day at work so my brain is pretty much mush, so there really isn't much more I can add. Hank is passed out drunk in the corner, so he's no help, as usual. **

**Anyways, here's the chappy… see you soon. :D **

**CHAPTER FIFTEEN**

"Aardvark!" squeaked Felicity in horror. "Aardvark, aardvark, aardvark!"

Diggle remained perfectly calm as he raised his hands in supplication. "My mistake," he said coolly. "Why don't you lead the way, Felicity? I'll follow."

Felicity touched his arm, pulling on it. "Oliver, please, put down the knife," she pleaded with him anxiously. "Diggle isn't going to hurt me."

Oliver suddenly realized what he was doing and dropped the knife, stepping back in horror. He shook his head, trying to clear it. "Diggle, I'm sorry," said Oliver shakily. "I-I just reacted. I didn't mean that." It had been so obvious to him that Diggle was making a threatening move on Felicity in that moment but now he didn't know why.

"It's fine," said an unruffled Diggle. "It's clear you've got some pretty defined personal boundary limits when it comes to Felicity. For everyone's peace of mind, I'll just make sure I stay within those limits, hmm?"

Oliver knew he was being unreasonable, knew Diggle was no kind of threat to Felicity but knowing that didn't stop the physical reaction he had to seeing the other man getting too close to her. Every thought left his mind other than keeping Felicity safe and when Diggle got too close to her, all Oliver could see was the potential threat the large man posed the much smaller Felicity.

"Okay," said Felicity unsteadily, "everyone is taking a breath. We're all good, right?" She was looking at Oliver when she asked that question.

Oliver nodded mutely. Pulling the knife on Diggle hadn't been premeditated, it had just happened. It had been an overwhelming instinct that had come from nowhere. Oliver wanted to promise it wouldn't happen again but he hadn't seen in coming when it first happened and doubted he'd be able to pre-empt another extreme outburst like that because of that fact. He just prayed Diggle's reflexes were going to be enough to keep himself safe from now on.

"Okay," said Felicity, taking a deep breath, "then you both need to see this." She headed out back into the main area, towards her computer.

Despite desperately trying to be reasonable, Oliver still found himself keeping himself between Felicity and Diggle as they walked back out into the main computer room.

"So," said Felicity, taking a seat at her computer and looking back at the other two men, "can everyone see?" She eyed the distance Diggle was still keeping from her. "Digg, can you see from there?"

"For everyone's sake, I'm going to say yes."

"This is crazy," ground out Oliver, frustrated at his own irrational behaviour. "Of course you can come closer, Diggle." The other man didn't look convinced but he came to stand on the other side of Felicity anyway. That feeling of Felicity being in mortal danger was back every second Diggle stood so close to her but Oliver gritted his teeth and resolutely tried to ignore it. He desperately tried to convince himself that Diggle was no kind of threat to Felicity but every cell in his body was on high alert, screaming at Oliver that Felicity was in danger. His wrist monitor began to beep loudly as Oliver's blood pressure sky rocketed, fresh sweat breaking out on trembling muscles which were poised to attack. Without a word Diggle simply backed up again so that he was no longer close to Felicity. Oliver's pulse slowed down, his monitor stopped beeping. "Damn it!" growled Oliver, angry at himself for not being able to bring his reactions under control by the force of his own will.

Felicity looked a little flustered at the interaction going on around her, so she opened up the first file, obviously looking for a distraction. "These last files are all video ones," she said quickly, trying to ignore the tension in the room Oliver knew he was responsible for.

The computer screen filled with people in a confined, metal room with one side being made up of glass from behind which they could see Coates. In the actual room there was a woman in a lab coat behind a metal partition with a locked door and three other men, all dressed in military uniform.

"_Day twelve post exposure to XR-320 dose 12b," intoned Professor Coates, her French accent making it obvious who was speaking. "Testing of subject's will to return to the designated alpha. Subject has shown a heightened state of agitation at separation from his alpha and is becoming increasingly aggressive." _

The screen split to show a man in sweat pants and t-shirt pacing up and down inside a small ante-chamber, looking decidedly agitated.

"He does not look like a happy camper," said Felicity worriedly. "Why do I feel like I'm not going to like where this is going?"

Oliver had a similar feeling of dread but Coates was speaking again.

"_Release test subject 328," she said coolly. "Prevent from accessing the alpha through any means necessary." _

The three armed men and well-built men straightened up, watching the door on the other side of the room as they stood in front of locked door which led to the young woman in the lab coat, who was clearly the designated alpha. The door slid open and the test subject was immediately through the door, making a beeline for the smaller anteroom.

"How does he know where she is?" asked Diggle as the other three men moved to stop him.

"He can smell her," said Oliver without hesitation, eyes not leaving the screen.

Felicity grimaced as an all-out war broke out between the four men. "I've been thinking about that. Our sense of smell is the strongest of all of our senses. I think the XR-320 must sensitize the olfactory senses of those exposed to it to be able to pick up the scent of the person they've been bonded to. Some of Coates' references have—" Felicity broke off abruptly. "Oh!" she gasped in horror as the test subject snapped one of the other men's arm at such an unnatural angle his bone popped out through his skin. Felicity went deathly white. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"That guy is not stopping," noted Diggle darkly as the man just kept up his frenzied attack on the others. Two men were already unconscious on the ground, covered in blood as the test subject overcame them with his unrelenting attack. Even though the man was covered in stab wounds and had been badly beaten he wasn't stopping. The last man standing charged at the subject but by now the floor was covered in blood and bits of flesh so they both ended up tumbling to the ground where the test subject managed to gain the upper hand in the most horrific way possible.

Oliver saw it coming a split second before it did and he tried to protect Felicity. "Felicity," he said urgently, "don't—" but it was too late. The incensed man tore the bottom jaw of the solider clear off his skull, causing a stream of arterial blood to paint the window partition as an impassive Professor Coates looked on.

Felicity screamed and buried her head in her hands, turning away as Oliver put a protective arm around her, letting Felicity bury her head into his stomach as he stood beside her. "This is not happening," she chanted a little hysterically, "that did not just happen."

Oliver and Diggle exchanged grim looks but the horror wasn't over yet. The test subject was now throwing himself at the metal door which separated him from the terrified woman inside the little antechamber. She was screaming for someone to help her but Coates simply stood by, watching with interest at the frenzied behaviour of her test subject to get back to the poor hapless woman. He broke down the door, not caring he'd obviously shattered the bones in his shoulder to get through the door. The woman tried to run past him but he grabbed her, the woman's screams became louder as she frantically flailed at the man to make him let her go. The fact she was trying to leave him sent the already incensed man into a frenzy and he tore at her, not willing to let her go for any reason. Oliver could see the desperate state the man was in, could even empathize on some horrible level. The thought of Felicity leaving him sent a charge of horror throughout his entire body but to see it escalate to this level was beyond confronting.

Felicity dared to sneak a look just as the man tore the hysterical woman's jugular out with his teeth, splattering blood and skin everywhere. She gave a choked gasp and jumped up, tearing herself out of Oliver's hold and running over to one of the furthest corners in the room from the computer screen. "Turn it off!" she yelled at them. "Turn it off!"

Oliver quickly moved to close the file but not before he saw the demented man now throwing himself against the wall in a feverish mania. He was still clinging tightly to the obviously dead woman under his arm, looking for a way out for both of them but Oliver knew there was none. Turning around, he hurried over to Felicity, who was backed up into a corner, bent over and shaking uncontrollably.

"Felicity, it's okay," said Diggle urgently but Oliver could see him keeping his distance and was frustrated knowing he was the reason. Even so, Oliver couldn't help but feel relieved the other man wasn't anywhere near Felicity right then. Everything already felt so volatile.

Oliver grabbed Felicity's arms, needing to make this better. "Felicity, it's over, it's okay."

Felicity was still shaking violently as she looked up at him with wide, terrified eyes. "Oh my God," she said in anguish, "that poor girl. He tore her to pieces, he tore them all to-to pieces."

Oliver cupped her face, knowing what she must be thinking. "Listen to me," he said urgently, "listen to me. I'd never hurt you, Felicity, _never_. I'd die before I'd let anything like that happen to you. You don't have to worry about anything like that, do you hear me?"

Felicity drew in an unsteady breath, still looking frightened.

Oliver grimaced and pressed his forehead against hers, squeezing his eyes close. "Felicity, please," he said in a low voice, "if you've ever believed anything about me, believe this, I'd never, ever hurt you. Please don't be afraid of me." Oliver felt Felicity tentatively touch his arm as he still cupped her face and he pulled back a little, looking intently down at her.

"I-I believe you," she said shakily. Felicity swallowed hard. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to be such a wimp but I really wasn't prepared for-for—" she bit her bottom lip.

"None of us where," said Oliver grimly and then let his thumb gently disentangle her bottom lip from her nervous gnawing. "But that isn't going to happen to us. I swear to you."

Diggle's voice came from behind them. "Then we need to get moving with this plan quickly."

Oliver had almost forgotten the other man's existence as he reluctantly let go of Felicity and turned around. "Agreed," said Oliver determinedly, "and the first thing we need to do is get Felicity somewhere safe, somewhere far away from me." There was a long pause in the room and Oliver sent them both a challenging look. "What?"

"Are you sure that is the best plan?" asked Felicity a little hesitantly.

"Of course it is," said Oliver instantly. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"Ah, because… umm… I'm not sure that…"

Diggle cut to the chase. "You're not going to make it without Felicity nearby."

Oliver's jaw hardened. "I can do it."

"You couldn't last two hours last time without your heart nearly exploding and I think it's probably safe to assume you'd be worse now," said Diggle flatly. "I don't see separation of you two at this point as an option."

"You can drug me," said Oliver sharply, "knock me out."

Felicity shook her head. "No way, it's too dangerous. Your body is already under this crazy amount of strain. We go and introduce more drugs into your system and the chances are you're going to be dead sooner rather than later. We can't take that risk."

Oliver made a frustrated sound. He needed Felicity to be safe but he seemed to be the only one. "We have to neutralize me as a threat to Felicity," he ground out. "I'm not taking any risks with her safety."

"Oliver, you're the one in most danger right now," said Felicity unevenly. "That tape, the test subject was twelve days post exposure to the XR-320, you're not even two days. I don't think we have to worry about those kinds of psychotic episodes yet but separation from me will cause a potentially life threatening physiological response in you." She took a deep breath. "We still have time, as long as we keep you calm and in low stress situations." Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Which means keeping me around. Sorry, but you're stuck with me for the foreseeable future."

"And out of everyone else's way," agreed Diggle. "If you're having difficulty with me being around Felicity then it's only going to be worse with other people. We need to get the two of you isolated so you've got no reason to stress, Oliver."

Oliver hated being treated with kid gloves like this. He wasn't used to being the weak link of the team which needed protecting. "I can handle other people being around Felicity," he snapped. "I'm not completely out of my mind yet."

"In a couple of hours there are going to be a whole bunch of people in the club upstairs," noted Diggle. "They're going to be prepping for tonight, cleaning, filling up inventory and most of them are going to be men. You telling me that doesn't bother you that on the other side of that door there are going to be men that close to Felicity?"

Oliver tensed at just hearing the scenario, hands curling into fists instinctively.

"Yeah," said Diggle dryly, "that's what I thought."

He ran a distracted hand through his hair. "Me being left alone with Felicity is not an option," he said grimly.

Felicity touched a hand to his back. "It's okay," she said softly. "I trust you, Oliver. I'm not afraid."

"Maybe you should be," said Oliver unhappily. Despite his recent assurances to her, Oliver couldn't help but worry about how much more out of control he was going to get.

"Whatever this toxin has done to you, you're still you," said Felicity resolutely. "I trust you, Oliver. I always have. I know you won't hurt me."

It was hard not to be affected by Felicity's faith in him. He'd begged her to believe in him but hearing her say that she did kind of made Oliver's knees go a little weak but at the same time made him feel like he could overcome anything.

"I think you two need to get out of town," said Diggle. "Somewhere isolated. I know this little place about an hour and half out of town. It's just a few cabins, pretty basic but it will be empty this time of the year. During hunting season it fills up but out of season it's usually just the old guy who runs it and his wife and they leave people to themselves once you've handed over the money."

"Out of town?" repeated Oliver uncertainly. He wasn't sure that was such a good idea, worried about how Felicity would feel to be isolated that way with him. For his part though, Oliver couldn't help but feel like a strong sense of relief at the thought of it just being the two of them, even though he'd just been advocating separation between them. It was like there were two Olivers, both fighting for control of his emotions and pulling him in different directions.

"But what about you?" worried Felicity, looking at Diggle. "You'll need help getting to Coates."

"Don't worry about me," said Diggle determinedly. "I've already got a plan."

"But you'll need back up," argued Felicity. "You can't get into Titan Tower by yourself."

"Titan Tower?" repeated Oliver with a scowl. "Diggle, no, there is no chance you can go there alone."

Diggle half-smiled. "I won't be. Don't worry, I told you, I have a plan. It may take me a day or two but I'll get what we need. In the meantime, I just need to know Oliver is locked down and secure and as far away from the general population as possible." He looked intently at the both of them. "You two just need to focus on that, I'll handle the rest."

"Okay then," said Felicity unevenly, "road trip. Yay." Her yay wasn't very convincing and Oliver couldn't exactly blame Felicity for that.

"It's going to be fine, Felicity," he said, trying to sound as reassuring as possible.

"I know," she said, trying to match his confidence.

Everything going to be fine had been Oliver's mantra from the very beginning of all this, starting with the testing of the suit. No one really wanted to point out that things had been anything but fine during that time. But they were all thinking it.

"I'll need to go and get some things from my apartment," said Felicity. "Pack an overnight bag."

"I already have one to go here," said Oliver. "So we can go directly to your place now and then head out."

Diggle nodded. "Stay in contact. I'll let you know when I have the antidote." He looked between them. "I have to start getting organized to get into the Tower. You two okay to take it from here?"

"Sure," said Felicity and took a deep breath, "no problem."

Diggle gave them both reassuring looks and then he was heading up the stairs. Oliver watched Felicity's gaze follow Diggle as the other man left. "Are you nervous about being alone with me?"

Felicity pulled her gaze from the stairs and looked at Oliver. "No, of course not."

"You look nervous."

"That's just how my face looks first thing in the morning." She put a self-conscious hand to her cheek. "It takes a while to work out what it should be doing."

Oliver walked over to her and pulled her hand away, keeping a loose hold of her wrist. "You look gorgeous," he said huskily.

Felicity looked a little stressed. "Okay."

"I mean it," said Oliver sincerely, not sure why Felicity would be upset by him saying that.

"I know you do," said Felicity unhappily. "Toothbrush."

"What?"

"Toothbrush, do you have a toothbrush in your pre-packed back pack?"

"Yes." He looked at her intently. "Why are you changing the subject?"

"I'm not," said Felicity quickly. "Should we take your car or mine?"

"Mine. You're doing it again."

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I'm just trying to get us organized. We might be gone a couple of days and it doesn't sound like this place is going to be full of the mod cons."

Oliver was watching her carefully. "Why aren't you comfortable with me telling you that you're beautiful?"

Felicity turned back to her desk and fiddled with a few items on it. "I'm comfortable with it," she said unevenly. "Do you think I should take my lap top?"

"If you want." He touched her arm and turned her around. "Felicity, are you nervous about being alone in a cabin with me?"

"No, why would I be nervous?" she said quickly.

"You did the denial followed by a question thing," noted Oliver. "That means you're lying."

"It's just I'm not a very outdoorsy, cabin in the woods person. I'm always worried about bear attacks."

"There aren't any bears in this area."

She gave him a sceptical look. "Are you saying that because it's true or because it's what you think I want to hear?"

"You don't have to worry about bear attacks," said Oliver patiently. "I promise." He was still watching her closely. "Is it really bears you're worried about attacking you or is it me?"

"I told you, Oliver, I trust you," said Felicity firmly. "I know you won't hurt me… you know, physically."

"And by that you're implying I'll hurt you in other ways?" asked Oliver sharply.

Felicity looked a little flustered again. "I just think it's really important to remember who we are."

"And who are we?" asked Oliver intently.

"Friends," said Felicity simply. "We're friends." She gave a determined nod. "And we'd better get moving. You want to grab your bag and then I'll drive us to my place?"

Oliver was up and complying with Felicity's instructions without even comprehending he was doing it, his mind more focused on what Felicity had just said. _Friends._ The word sounded so hollow to him all of a sudden. Felicity was trying to confine their relationship to that single word but Oliver already knew that wasn't possible because he'd tried and failed to do that himself before all this had started. He snuck a look at her while Felicity busied herself with the computer. She really was beautiful and Oliver wished they had more time for him to prove that to her. Then again, they were about to spend the next couple of days together, just the two of them. Just the thought of being alone with Felicity, no one else around, sent a release of endorphins throughout Oliver's body, making him a little giddy.

Felicity straightened up from the computer. "I'm ready." She looked at him. "How about you?"

"So ready," said Oliver, a little too eagerly.

Felicity put a bright smile on her lips. "This is going to be fun."

"It really is going to be okay," Oliver promised her, hearing the doubt in her tone, despite the smile. "Don't worry."

"I'm not."

"Good."

Oliver made a sweeping gesture towards the stairs. "Lady's first."

Felicity gave a smile and little nod and headed up the stairs, Oliver following behind her and being treated to the sight of her shapely bottom swinging back and forth of his face. A rush of blood abruptly left his brain, heading somewhere decidedly south of the border. Oliver stumbled a little, missing a step as he momentarily forgot how to put one foot in front of the other.

Felicity looked back over her shoulder in him in concern. "Are you alright?"

"Absolutely," said Oliver hastily, actually feeling himself blush a little.

"You look flushed."

"No, I'm good." He fixed the most reassuring smile he could to his lips. "Just missed a step."

"You told me you could do stairs," worried Felicity as she continued on up the stairs.

"And I can." Much to Oliver's disappointment they were at the top of the stairs and he had to give up his vantage point to be able to appreciate that glorious butt of hers. "Don't worry about me, Felicity. I'm good." Oliver put a hand on her back, as low as he could appropriately get away with but that didn't stop him from fanning out his fingers so that they were brushing against the swell of her bottom. More blood left his brain. "I'm amazing," he said warmly, feeling exactly that from being able to touch her like this. Oliver flashed back to the feeling of that heavenly bottom filling his hands and those same hands actually itched to do just that but he didn't want to freak Felicity out.

Felicity gave a nervous little smile. "Okay then, here we go, I guess."

"Here we go," agreed Oliver huskily, keeping his hand firmly on her back as they left the building together. Secluded time alone with Felicity. Oliver was in heaven already.

**A/N****: Okay, so I've set the scene for the next part of the story. I hope you all approve. And does anyone have any guesses as to who Diggle is going to go to for some help? I've got a few imaginary t-shirts left for the person who gets it right. ;) **


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N****: I've been looking forward to showing you guys this chapter, I really like it… which, if history is anything to go by on all of my previous fics… means that there won't be a big response to it. lol There is usually an inverse relationship between how much I like a chapter and the response it gets. The more I like it, the less people seem to comment on it. It's so weird. **

**Oh, and just a by the by but one of my reviewers, Hal, expressed a concern that this wasn't turning out to be a love story. It's true that so far it has all been about shaking up the Olicity dynamic and that is what Oliver's exposure to the gas has caused. The proper part of this love story comes later… this is all about the catalyst. ;) So, don't despair, it's all good. :D **

**Okay, where was I? Oh yes, inverse relationships. Anyways, regardless of responses, this chapter really works for me and I think part of that is that it is heavily dialogued based and as previously confessed, I'm a dialog whore… and not the classy kind that put the effort in and dress nicely, smell good and meet you in an upmarket hotel. I'm more of the skanky, disease-riddled variety of whore who hangs out in back alleyways when it comes to dialog. You're going to catch something off me, it's pretty much a given. **

**I'm currently struggling upstream of this story because I'm at the action part of this story and as previously stated also, I HATE writing action stuff. I find it tedious, describing everything. It takes so long to set a scene and get my characters moving around in it when I know if it was a visual medium it would literally take less than two seconds. Frustrating. But, whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right? So, I'll slog on with the action stuff before being able to relax back into the stuff I prefer – the emotional and comedic stuff. **

**And yes, as I'm up to writing chapter 26 at the moment, I realize I'm holding out on you guys. Sorry about that… and when I say sorry, I mean not sorry for the simple reason it's all for your own good. No, really, listen to your Aunty Lou on this subject. I am currently posting 5 updates a week, which, I don't think is too bad. It's better than that stingy Arrow show which only does 1 a week. What the heck is that all about? I can keep the chapters coming in regulated doses but if you were up to date with me, a week could go by before I posted the next chapter and none of us wants that. So, to keep things sure and steady, I'm trying to maintain my lead over you with this story. So far so good. Let's hope the muse can keep up the pace. See, so me withholding on you comes from a place of love. ;) Also, I just enjoy being withholding… some might call it a character flaw… I prefer to see it as more of a character flavour. ;) **

**Speaking of character flavours, I had to break up another fight between Hank and Fernando Del Vecchio today. Those two just don't get on. There was a flurry of hair pulling, crotch grabbing and bitch slapping going on. Llamas are big on the bich slapping… PSA announcement, the more you know. **

**Part of the problem is that Fernando Del Vecchio is imaginary, as most llamas are and Hank hates imaginary things with the fire of a thousand suns. He said it's because he once had an imaginary friend who cheated with his then girlfriend on him. Personally I side-eye that statement because it's hard to imagine Hank with a friend, even an imaginary one and even harder to picture him actually being able to get a girlfriend. Most women are really put off by the fact he's got that semi-absorbed Siamese twin growing out of his back. Especially when it blinks at you. I'm not going to lie, it's a bit off putting over your morning cereal. Anyways, there was a lot of spitting and flinging of faeces going on but I honestly couldn't think of another way of breaking up the fight. **

**Anyways, they're both in a time out now. Hank is threatening to bring down a nuclear Armageddon on me for such a crime but an empty baked bean can filled with popping candy an atomic bomb does not make. So, I feel pretty confident I won't be having to suffer through a nuclear winter any time soon. Fernando Del Vecchio is taking the time out much more in his stride. He's good like that. Most imaginary things are. **

**But enough of my domestic disturbances. You've come here for a chapter and a chapter you shall have. Read on and have your life changed forever…**

***Disclaimer: It is unlikely that you'll have your life changed forever when reading this chapter… unless you get taken by aliens in the process… I feel like anal probings would change your life forever… but then, I'm conservative like that***

**CHAPTER SIXTEEN**

Oliver's gaze flicked around the small convenience store, on the lookout for any possible danger. He kept close to Felicity as she filled her basket with food she said they'd need for their impromptu out of town trip. In fact, he was a little too close Oliver discovered as he kept bumping into Felicity when she'd stop to look at something on the shelf. This last time Oliver had been looking back over his shoulder, sure someone had been coming up behind them when Felicity had stopped and he just kept walking into her, almost knocking her down. His arm shot out and grabbed Felicity around the waist and dragging her back to him to stop her from losing her footing.

"Ouch, Oliver!" she complained, grabbing his leg to steady herself. "You're not helping this go any faster." Felicity turned her head and looked back up at him over her shoulder. "_If_ this is you trying to help," she qualified. "Are you sure you couldn't wait in the car for a few minutes?"

"It's too dangerous," said Oliver sternly, not understanding why Felicity couldn't see the threats all around her. "I need to be nearby in case someone tries to hurt you." He instinctively tightened his hold on Felicity, fingers fanning out over her stomach and drawing her in closer to him. His anxiety levels dipped at having her this close to him and Oliver dropped his head, resting his cheek against hers and taking an unsteady breath. If they could just stay like this forever it'd be perfect. Oliver's other arm came out and snaked its way around Felicity's waist as he wrapped both arms around her. "I need to keep you safe," he whispered in her ear even as holding her made him feel exactly that – safe and like he'd finally come home. Felicity gave a little shudder in his arms and her involuntary reaction to their closeness had the blood pumping in his veins once more. "Felicity," he rasped, lips brushing a flushed cheek, feeling himself falling and making no attempt to save himself.

A middle-aged woman chose that moment to walk down the aisle. She glanced at the two of them, Oliver hugging Felicity to him from behind, nuzzling her cheek.

"We're just friends," blurted out Felicity on seeing the other woman, her cheeks reddening.

The woman just arched an eyebrow at her but didn't comment, continuing on her way down the aisle.

"Felicity, you don't need to announce our relationship status to complete strangers," said Oliver in vague frustration. He could feel her trying to pull away from him, the moment broken and he was on edge again.

"I just think it's a good idea for all of us to remember exactly what is going on here," said Felicity determinedly, even though her cheeks were still decidedly pink. "We're getting supplies because we have to go out of town and we have to go out of town because you're not yourself right now."

"I'm still me, Felicity," said Oliver stubbornly. "You said so yourself, just before, back at the Foundry."

"Yes, you're you but you're also not you, so I just think we all have to be aware the you you are is not the you you necessarily want to be and not to forget that," she said determinedly.

Oliver frowned. "What?"

"We just have to get through this, Oliver," said Felicity firmly. "Diggle will find an antidote and then you'll be the real you again and everything will go back to the way it was."

Oliver looked at her intently, remembering what it had felt like to kiss her and then trying to imagine going back to where that wasn't going to happen again. That didn't seem like a plan Oliver could get behind. "What would you say if I said I don't want things to go back to who they used to be with us?"

"I'd say you don't know what you're saying," said Felicity without hesitation.

Oliver scowled. "I still know my own mind, Felicity."

"No, you don't, that's kind of the point. You think you do but trust me, you don't." She glanced down at her half-full basket. "Which is why we need to get these supplies and then get out of here. You're getting all sweaty again." Felicity grabbed at his wrist to check his monitor. "And your BP is rising again."

"That's because every guy in this place is staring at you," growled Oliver, sending a death glare over at two men at the end of the aisle who was periodically glancing their way.

Felicity followed his gaze and made an exasperated noise. "They're gay, Oliver," she said, taking in the way they were holding hands and clearly a couple. "Besides, I really don't think I'm the one they're checking out."

Oliver didn't believe her. They were obviously interested in Felicity and he didn't take his eyes off them until they'd disappeared down another aisle.

"Do you prefer the regular Oreos or the chocolate ones?"

Oliver turned his attention back to Felicity who'd taken a few steps away and was back to shopping. He immediately moved closer to her again and without thinking slipped his hand into hers, needing her not to be able to move away from him like that again. Oliver looked at the contents of her basket. Pop tarts, cookie dough, Twinkies and brownies were already making up Felicity's idea of essential foods. "You're not high, are you?" he asked in vague confusion. "All of this food seems not so much as necessary supplies as more like you're catering for a stoner party."

"Excuse me," said Felicity indignantly, "but Twinkies and pop tarts are a well-known base food. You know, like with the food pyramid? You have your base foods and then build on top of them, up to your less interesting fruits and vegetables."

Oliver wrinkled his nose. "I'm pretty sure that isn't how the food pyramid works. Twinkies are not a basic food group."

"You're drugged and disorientated," said Felicity indignantly, "so I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that."

"Are we going to get any real food?" asked Oliver hopefully.

"This is real food," protested Felicity.

"I meant real food which won't send me into a diabetic coma."

"Your lack of a sweet tooth really creeps me out," said Felicity flatly. "It's just so unnatural."

"I know, it's on my cons list."

"But you get why it's so unnatural, right?" she pushed him. "Who doesn't like something deliciously sweet in their mouth?"

Oliver couldn't help himself, his gaze dropped to Felicity's full lips, remembering just how sweet the taste of her had been and she was right, who could help but crave that? He'd promised himself that he wouldn't cross that line between them again, not when he'd frightened Felicity so much the last time but suddenly that promise seemed like an overly optimistic one. Felicity thought it was the toxin in his system making him want her like this but Oliver knew that wasn't true. Would it really be the end of the world to have one just more little taste of the lusciousness which were Felicity's kisses? Oliver realized he didn't care if it did mean the end of the world as long as he could be kissing Felicity when that end came. He leaned in towards Felicity, intent on showing her just the kind of sweet tooth he really did have.

"Ollie?"

The female voice jarred its way into Oliver's consciousness as he lifted his head and looked over at a very surprised looking Laurel who had somehow managed to pick the same convenience store in all of Starling City to be doing her own picking up of a few essentials.

"Laurel," gasped Felicity, pushing against Oliver's chest to make him take a step back from her but Oliver planted his feet and didn't budge an inch, tightening his hold on her hand as she tried to pull it from his. "Oliver was just helping me with my contact lens."

Laurel looked between them in confusion. "You're wearing glasses," she pointed out.

Felicity put a quick hand to her glasses and gave a nervous smile. "Oh yeah, so I am. No wonder I can't find my contact lens then."

"Right," said Laurel slowly.

"Hi Laurel," said Oliver calmly, "how are you?"

She smiled. "Fine, just doing some quick shopping on my lunch break." Laurel looked at them with interest. "How about you?"

"We're going out of town on business for the weekend and we're just picking up some supplies for the trip before we head off," said Felicity hastily.

"It's Thursday," observed Laurel.

Felicity blinked. "We want to beat the traffic," she said weakly.

Oliver still didn't know why Felicity felt the need to explain or apologize for their plans. "We're spending the weekend together," he said, not bothered Laurel should know such a thing.

"Not together together," explained Felicity quickly. "Just together together, you know, to work platonically on work things together… as friends… who work together."

"And you need to leave town to do that because…?" asked Laurel hesitantly.

"Too many distractions in town," said Oliver grimly, eyeing off the two men who were now paying for their shopping.

Laurel eyed the way Oliver's fingers were threaded through Felicity's. "Okay then… well, I hope you have a nice time."

"We won't," said Felicity hastily, "because we'll be working the whole time. Boring, no fun, dull old work."

Laurel just smiled. "Well, good luck with that, I guess." She headed off towards the counter to pay for her items, leaving them alone again.

"Oh great," groaned Felicity as Laurel paid for her items and left the store, "now Laurel thinks we're sleeping together."

"So what if she does?" asked Oliver indifferently.

Felicity gave him a look of annoyance. "See, this is how I know you're not in your right mind."

"Laurel and I are not together, are not trying to get together or anything else," said Oliver simply. "She's free to get on with her life as am I. We don't owe each other anything." Even as he said those words Oliver felt a certain freedom knowing they were at last true.

Felicity rolled her eyes at him. "That was Laurel Lance, the great love of your live, Oliver. Sure, you two might be taking a break right now but we both know you'll eventually find your way back to each other. It's just who you are – Oliver, the guy who is in love with Laurel and always will be."

Oliver's expression became suddenly serious as he heard Felicity's opinion of his relationship with Laurel. "Do you want to hear a story, Felicity?"

"What, now?"

"Yes, now. You know how you don't understand my lack of a sweet tooth, well, when I was a kid, I was a fiend for anything with sugar in it. I'd eat my own body weight in candy if I was left alone with the stuff."

"Really?" asked Felicity skeptically. "So, what happened?"

"One Halloween, when I was about nine years old, I had this huge haul of candy from my trick or treating and I mean huge as in literally bigger than I was."

"That is awesome," said Felicity in awe.

"Yeah, I thought so too until I stayed up half the night attempting to eat my way through that bag of candy and then the other half of the night throwing up non-stop." Oliver grimaced. "I thought I'd gotten everything I could ever want that Halloween night and instead it just made me violently ill and I couldn't stomach anymore sweet things after that."

Felicity's face was full of sympathetic horror. She put her hands on his arms. "Oh Oliver," she said with heartfelt contrition, "I'm so, so sorry."

Oliver arched an eyebrow and gave a wry smile. "This is by the by but can I just say that you gave me a bigger reaction and more sympathy from my candy story then what you've given me over some of the horror stories which I've told you about happening to me on the island."

Felicity pulled a slightly embarrassed face. "I guess I can relate more to the loss of candy love story – sorry."

Oliver just smiled. "It's fine and not really my point."

"What is your point?" asked Felicity, a little bewildered.

"My point is that I used to really love candy and couldn't imagine my life without it but then stuff happened and I realized that while I'll always have fond memories of Butterfingers and Mars Bars, I don't actually miss eating them."

Felicity patted his arm sympathetically. "That's really brave of you, Oliver."

He could see Felicity still didn't get his point. "Which is like Laurel and me," he prompted her. "She was a part of my past I'll always remember fondly but too much has happened for us to be what we used to be with each other ever again."

"That's the toxin in your system talking."

"I came to this conclusion over a year ago, Felicity, so that would be quite the feat."

"I just don't think you're in any right condition to really know how you feel about anything," she insisted stubbornly, "and that's why it's important not to burn any bridges and have people thinking things which aren't true."

"I'm getting a little over you discounting everything I say and putting it down to the XR-320," said Oliver in frustration.

"I'm trying to protect you, Oliver," said Felicity unevenly.

"I don't need protecting from how I feel about you," said Oliver intently.

Felicity grimaced and looked torn. "I'm going to get both the regular and the chocolate Oreos," she declared abruptly. "I think it's definitely a double up Oreo situation we've got going on here." Felicity inclined her head. "You'd better grab what you want as well."

Oliver moved them down the aisle, keeping a tight hold on Felicity's hand as they continued their conversation. "We don't have any kind of situation going on here." He picked up some apples and a couple of tomatoes, putting them in Felicity's basket.

"Except for the whole you bursting into flames if I'm not around," said Felicity flatly.

"That's a physiological issue brought on by the gas," said Oliver dismissively. "It doesn't have anything to do with my mental capacity." He went to pick up a couple of steaks.

"We don't know if there will be a cooker in the cabin," Felicity warned him. "Diggle said it'd be pretty basic."

"You got cookie dough," pointed out Oliver.

"What's your point?"

"Doesn't that need an oven?"

Felicity snorted. "No. How do you eat your cookie dough?"

"As actual cookies," said Oliver in consternation.

Felicity rolled her eyes. "Amateur."

"Oh my God," said Oliver in disbelief. "How are you still alive with your diet?"

"Look, I'm not the problem here," said Felicity firmly.

"That's my point, either am I," said Oliver stubbornly, opting for some bread and cold cuts instead of the steak, just to be safe. "Apart from the system on overdrive thing which I have in hand as long as you are nearby, all that's left is a vague hyper-protectiveness when it comes to you."

They were walking up to the check out to pay now. "Vague hyper-protectiveness?" repeated Felicity flatly. "Really, _vague_? That's what we're calling it?"

"I don't think I'm being completely unreasonable in my concerns about you," argued Oliver.

"You so totally are," said Felicity as the person behind the counter quickly ran through their items and Oliver distractedly paid her as he and Felicity picked up a bag of groceries each and continued onto the car. Felicity walked around to the driver's side of the car as she unlocked the backseat for them to put the bags of groceries into. "Oliver, you're seeing danger around every corner and that simply isn't the reality of the situation. I am in no danger whatsoever and you're still ready to break the neck of any one who so much as looks at me sideways." She closed the back door. "It's overkill and the fact you can't see that just proves my point about you not being in your right—"

Suddenly a man appeared from the shadows of the alleyway behind Felicity and Oliver immediately tensed but he was on the other side of the car, too far away from her to stop what he could see was coming.

The man dressed in a grubby grey hoodie grabbed Felicity from behind and wrapped his arm around her neck, pressing a knife to her neck. "Give me the car keys, bitch," he snarled at her.

Felicity had initially gotten a fright but then she pulled a face and rolled her eyes. "Geez, talk about timing."

The man seemed momentarily taken aback by her reaction but then he pressed the knife harder against her neck as Oliver felt a cold rage overcome him. "Just shut the fuck up, you little slut and hand me the keys and no one has to get hurt here."

Felicity grimaced as the knife cut her skin and caused a tiny trickle of blood to escape the wound. "I really don't think that is going to be an option," she said unevenly, looking at Oliver worriedly.

#

Diggle walked up to the young man behind the bar who was restocking the shelves, ready for another busy night at Verdant. "Roy, you got a moment?"

Roy flicked him a glance but didn't stop restocking. "Sure, what's up?"

"I need your help on a little project of mine."

"What kind of project?"

Diggle's gaze wandered over to the other man sweeping the floor of the club.

Roy followed his gaze. "Hey, Pete, you want to go and grab some more stock up for me?"

Pete gave a nod of his head. "Sure," he said easily and headed off to do as he was ask, leaving the two men alone.

Roy gave Diggle a pointed look. "Okay, what's the project?"

"I need help accessing a particular building."

Roy arched an eyebrow. "And you're coming to me? Why isn't Oliver helping you?"

"Oliver is out of town for a few days, taking a bit of a vacation."

Roy made a surprised sound. "He does that, takes vacations? Since when?"

"Since today," said Diggle firmly.

"Something is going on, isn't it? What's wrong?"

"Nothing that you need to worry about. Now, can you help me or not?"

Roy shrugged. "Sure, what's the place?"

"Titan Tower."

Roy blinked. "You're kidding me? You want to break into Disney Tower, the stabbiest place on earth?"

Diggle expression was impassive as Roy referred to the place by its locally known nickname. "That's the plan."

Roy looked worried. "Why don't we just shoot each other in the face now and avoid the midtown traffic?" He scowled. "You know they've got pit gators in that place."

"I find that highly unlikely."

"Oh yeah, it's likely," said Roy knowingly. "A buddy of mine used to work for a pet shop and he said the Peruvians came in and ordered a whole bunch of baby alligators offa the store a couple of years ago. Now, I don't know how big gators get in two years and frankly, I'm not keen to find out."

"They're not keeping alligators in a high rise office block in the middle of town," said Diggle in exasperation having also heard a lot of wild rumors about Disney Tower in the past.

"Not in the building, under it," said Roy with great certainty. "In the basement."

"The basement is exactly where we need to get into."

Roy pulled a face. "You're not selling me on this job."

"So, you're telling me you're too scared to help me out with this."

"Smart," said Roy flatly, "I'm too _smart_ to help you out with this."

Diggle shrugged. "Fine." He turned to leave.

"Seriously?" asked Roy in annoyance. "You're going to do this anyway?"

Diggle turned back to him. "It's important."

"So important that Oliver bailed on it?" asked Roy a little acerbically.

"I told you, Oliver is out of town for the next couple of days," said Diggle calmly.

"So, can Felicity get us in—"

"Felicity isn't going to be helping out with this one either."

"So what, it's just you and me?"

"Yes."

"Where's Felicity?"

"Indisposed."

"The same kind of indisposed that Oliver is?"

"That's not really the issue right now."

"No, the issue is that you're asking me to risk getting eaten." Roy grimaced. "I got a real phobia about being eaten."

Diggle gave him a wry look. "I don't think you're alone with that particular fear."

"No, I mean a proper phobia," said Roy, looking on edge. "I don't mind being stabbed, shot, poisoned, punched, dropped from a great height, run over, whatever, but I really, really got this thing about being eaten alive." He screwed his face up. "I watched this documentary once about these huge saltwater crocodiles in Australia and they cut one open and this body of a kid was inside." Roy blanched. "I couldn't eat meat for a week after that. The thought of being chewed on while you're still alive and screaming…" he gave a shudder. "Man, that just ain't right."

"For what it's worth, I don't think two year old alligators could eat a grown man," said Diggle conversationally.

"No?" said Roy hopefully.

"No, they'd definitely have to chop you up into smaller pieces."

Roy glared at him. "In what way is that helpful?"

Diggle gave another shrug. "Well, you'd be dead, or pretty close to if they hacked you up into pieces beforehand."

"So?" squeaked Roy.

"So, you said you had a thing about being eaten alive," said Diggle easily. "You wouldn't be alive by that scenario, problem solved."

"_That's_ your version of solving a problem?" asked Roy in disbelief.

"Sure."

"Okay, I'm going to need to veto this plan of yours before I sign up," said Roy warily. "Your ideas about trouble shooting have got me on edge."

"Relax, kid," said Diggle easily. "I have 3/8ths of a great plan."

"3/8ths?" repeated Roy in horror. "That's not even half a plan!"

"I like to leave a little wiggle room for contingency plans."

"5/8ths is not wiggle room," protested Roy in agitation. "It's a giant hole through which I can fall through and end up as alligator poop."

"Alright, fine, what fraction would make you feel more comfortable about this?"

Roy's brow creased. "I don't know, 11/12ths maybe."

"Okay then," said Diggle without hesitation, "I have 11/12ths of an amazing plan."

"You're lying."

"What's your point?"

Roy made an annoyed noise. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

"Nobody said the hero business was going to be all hearts and flowers, kid," said Diggle.

"Maybe not but they should have at least mentioned the possibility that you could get eaten at some point," grumbled Roy.

"It's in the fine print. Always read the fine print."

"When and where do you want me?" said Roy in resignation. "And am I wearing the leathers?"

"No, that'll probably just make you seem more delicious to the alligators," said Diggle, straight-faced, "or make them angry in solidarity with the cows."

"I know you think everyone thinks you're a really cool guy but I'm telling you, they don't." asked Roy in annoyance.

"Yes, they do," said Diggle with calm confidence as he walked away.

"Damn it," muttered Roy, "I know."

"Meet me across the road from Titan Tower at three o'clock," said Diggle.

"Will you have the rest of the plan by then?" called out Roy as the other man was about to leave the club.

"It's entirely possible," said Diggle blithely as he kept on walking.

"How possible?"

"About thirty-two percent possible."

"Thirty-two percent?" said Roy in distress and shook his head at himself. "Why do I keep on asking for the numbers on this thing? They are not making me feel better about anything."

Diggle didn't bother to answer the obviously rhetorical question and just kept on walking. He hurried across to his car and climbed inside. Diggle glanced at his watch and then pulled out the piece of paper with the number Forbes-Hamilton had given him. As much fun as it had been to mess with Roy, Diggle was under no illusions as to how hard this was going to be and he needed to try and stack this thing in his favor as much as he could before launching a full frontal assault on hell. He dialed the number, knowing this was going to be a one time advantage he was going to have to use to the best of his ability.

**A/N****: Yes, I threw Laurel in there. It surprised me too. ;) I personally don't have a problem with Laurel as a character. I quite like her and respect the history between her and Ollie. Of course, I'll always want Felicity with Oliver romantically but I feel secure enough in Olicity's connection (particularly in this fic) that I can have her in Oliver's world and not feel like that takes anything away from Felicity. But that's just me. :D **

**And what did you think of Roy and Diggle… Riggle, perhaps? I'm having such a ball with those two. I still haven't made much progress into Season 2 of the show and don't think I've seen them share a scene together yet, so I have no idea how they interact on the show but this is how they should be in my apparently not so humble opinion. They are just too much fun together and I'm finding they provide a nice counter balance to the heavy emotion going on between Olicity. Riggle forever! Lol **

**Now, what can I spoil about the next chapter for you, to make sure you tune in? I'll give you three key tease words… Aardvark (obviously)… Bubonic Plague… Broom. That pretty much sums up the next chappy in a nutshell. Hope I haven't given too much away. And thank you, as always, for reading. :D **


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N****: Hi guys, miss me?! Yeah, me too, that's why I've taken to sleeping under your bed. You snore, did you know that? No biggie, I find it quite relaxing as I insert cut out pictures of my face into all of your photos. BFF's forever! Or until you die… whichever comes first. Wait, why are you edging away from me like that? I thought you'd think it was cute if we dressed exactly alike. Why does this always happen to me with new friends? Try to show your appreciation for them and suddenly you're getting a restraining order slapped on you. People just don't understand that my friendship is a beast which likes to roam free… and in your bushes. **

**Hmm… where was I? Oh yes, saying hi. That escalated quickly, didn't it? I had my day off today, my one this month, so I'm still a little heady with the joy of it all. It's almost over… sniff… back to body parts and fleshy bits tomorrow. I'm in Histology this week – I actually run the department, consider that reality for a moment. So, I'll be cutting up human body parts all week. Good times. **

**So glad people seem to approve of Riggle, because honestly, it you didn't I was pretty screwed because they feature heavily in the next 10 chapters or so. I see some people are getting frustrated with Felicity's refusal to take Oliver's feelings seriously… sorry about that but I honestly believe that is how she'd react in this situation. And yes, she's going to continue to try and protect Oliver from himself and herself from being absolutely heart broken by the end of all this. Remember, it's been two years where, apart from a few looks and a couple of almost kisses that Oliver himself discounted before all of this happened AND he bedded every woman other than Felicity who came within a ten mile radius… you've got to have doubts about how deep his feelings for you really ran. I mean, Felicity knows that Oliver cares deeply for her as a friend and confidante but this all-encompassing romantic love which just appeared out of the blue? You've got to side eye that a bit. **

**I mean, it's torture for her because all she really wants to do is jump on the good ship Oliver and ride him into parts unknown… if you know what I mean? ;) However, if/when Oliver comes out of this and his feelings don't prove to be anywhere as intense as what Felicity knows hers are for him… where does that leave them. Awkward Town, that's where and living on Heartbreak Street for Felicity. Imagine that, having this intense romantic/sexual relationship with someone and then one day they wake up and just go, you know, I'm kinda over it. I mean, that happens in real life enough as it is but to know that it was never real for Oliver if that did happen, I don't know if Felicity would think she could come back from that. **

**So yes, Felicity will continue to try and be the strong one in all of this for a while because she thinks she's protecting them both. Now, that being said, it doesn't mean we're not going to have some big fun with Oliver trying to convince her otherwise and Felicity having her weak moments. Personally I really like the idea of Oliver having to break a sweat in pursuing a woman. He's never really had to do that before – they all just threw themselves at his feet. Even the Laurel hook up in S1. He just turns up at her door, ready to go forward with the relationship, basically says 'my bad' and Laurel throws herself into his arms. Let's face it – Oliver has had it far too easy on the whole 'getting the girl' front so far. I mean, he's complete rubbish at keeping the girl, but getting them usually just requires him to smile and take his shirt off… which I totally understand, don't get me wrong. No judgment here. Lol **

**Okay, after all of that justification, I will just leave you with this thought that I'm going to make Oliver work hard for Felicity and seriously have to chase her… which means I have to give Felicity reasons to second guess his declarations. And thus a fan fic or two is born. Trust me, the last part of this story and all of the next, your cup will be running over with the Olicity dance of love. ;) **

**And meanwhile, you came here to read a chapter, didn't you? It's the cheese I dangle so you'll keep showing up so I have someone to talk to… umm… type to maybe? Whatever. Let's get this show on the road already… **

**CHAPTER SEVENTEEN**

Felicity could see the murderous rage in Oliver's eyes as without a word, he advanced on them. She could tell it wasn't exactly the reaction the would-be carjacker was expecting.

"You stay where you are, man!" he ordered him, instinctively backing up, still with a tight grip on Felicity. "I'll cut her throat!"

"Stop talking," groaned Felicity, knowing this was only going to end badly for the other man the more he threatened her.

Oliver was obviously in no mood to do subtle as he leapt across the car, sliding across the hood and landing a couple of feet away from them. Her assailant was beginning to panic, taking the knife from her neck and waving it at Oliver. "Don't you come any closer, I will gut you like a pig!" he yelled at Oliver.

Oliver moved so quickly that Felicity blinked and all but missed him closing the small distance between them and grabbing the man's wrist, breaking it with one simple action. The man howled in pain and dropped the knife in the same instance that Oliver grabbed Felicity's arm and swung her out of harm's way. Felicity gasped with how quickly that had all unfolded as she took a few unsteady steps backwards. Oliver wasn't done with her attacker. He scooped up the knife and swiped out the other man's feet from underneath him in one fluid motion. The man hit the sidewalk hard and Oliver was immediately standing over the top of him, driving the knife through the man's hand and managing to pin it to the concrete with the force of his blow.

Felicity winced at the violence of the action as the man gave another moan of agony. "Oliver, that's enough, stop!"

Oliver didn't listen, just lifted his fist and started to rain down hard punches to the man's face.

Felicity knew he was seconds away from killing the man. "Aardvark!" she cried out to him. "Oliver, stop! Aardvark!"

He couldn't seem to hear her, all of Oliver's attention on the man who'd dared to threaten her as he beat him to a bloody pulp on the sidewalk.

Felicity scrambled to try and diffuse the situation, knowing Oliver in his right mind would never want to take this man's life, no matter his crime. The car keys were over on the ground from where she'd dropped them and Felicity ran over and scooped them up. "Oliver, I'm leaving!" she yelled at him. "You have to come with me." It was the only chance she had that Oliver's need to stay with her would overcome his need to neutralize perceived threats to her. Felicity knew she couldn't physically stop the onslaught, she had to resort to psychological warfare. She jumped into the car and started the engine, looking over at Oliver. "I'm going, Oliver!" she warned him.

Something broke through Oliver's haze and he lifted his head to see that she was indeed going to leave him. He hesitated for only the briefest second but then Oliver was on his feet, hurrying over to the car and leaving the broken body of the still groaning man on the concrete. Felicity blew out an unsteady breath of relief as she quickly put the car in gear and drove Oliver away from any further temptation to finish the job. "Okay," she said unsteadily, "that was unlucky and frankly, really bad timing but it still doesn't mean I'm in permanent danger." Felicity navigated her way through traffic on auto-pilot as she tried to get a handle on the situation. She kept throwing nervous glances over at Oliver who was sitting in the passenger seat, bloodied hands balled into fists and just staring straight ahead. Felicity had no idea what he was thinking and the fact he wasn't talking was making her nervous and babble even more. "There is no need to blow this out of proportion and get all worked up over something that could have happened to anyone and it wasn't that big of a deal." Felicity's words were falling all over themselves as she tried to reassure Oliver who still wasn't speaking and she could see that he was reining in some pretty big emotions. He was shaking a little and every muscle on his body was bulging, the vein in his head was practically audible in its throbbing and he was covered in sweat. Felicity was pretty certain that wasn't all from the fight because Oliver didn't need to exert that much energy to take down the hapless criminal. His wrist monitor was starting to beep and Felicity grimaced in concern. "Oliver?"

"Stop the car," he ground out from behind clenched teeth.

"What?"

"Stop the car," Oliver repeated, turning his head to look at her so fiercely that Felicity was momentarily worried.

"You're not going to go back and go after that guy, are you?" she fretted. "Because I really think he's seen the error of his ways." She wrinkled her nose. "I mean, when he can see again that is. I really think he's going to world class black eyes come tomorrow."

"Pull over," ground out Oliver again.

Felicity reluctantly pulled into a car park up ahead, hoping she'd put enough distance between Oliver and the carjacker for the other man to be safe. The car hadn't even come to a complete halt before Oliver was out of his seat and stalking around the front of car. For a moment Felicity panicked, sure he was going to go back after the man but then he was at her door, pulling it open and crouching down in front of her.

Oliver released her seatbelt and turned Felicity around in her seat. His hands immediately ran over her entire body. "Are you hurt?" Oliver asked urgently, his worried gaze sweeping her all over. "Did that guy hurt you anywhere?"

"Ah… n-no," said Felicity, a little taken aback.

Oliver pulled out the bottom of his shirt and lifted it up to gently wipe away at the thin stream of blood at her neck. It was kind of shocking to Felicity that the same hands which could be capable of such violence could also be so incredibly tender. All of Oliver's attention was focused on the small wound at her neck as he dabbed away at it carefully. Felicity took in his intent expression and bit her bottom lip. "It-it's not bad," she said a little breathlessly. "I've cut myself worse shaving." Felicity hesitated. "Not that I shave," she continued on hastily. "I mean, not my face. I shave my armpits and I'm just saying that I've cut myself worse there, one time it was so bad it actually scabbed over and you probably don't need to know that," she trailed off as Oliver's fierce blue gaze was suddenly trapping her own.

"He could have killed you," Oliver bit out, his fury at that thought making his voice shake a little. "What would you have done if I hadn't been there?"

"I would have given him your car keys and wished him God speed," said Felicity without hesitation.

"And if that hadn't been enough for him?" ground out Oliver. "He had his hands all over you. He wanted more than that car. He wanted you."

"Pretty sure he didn't. I definitely think the car was all he wanted."

Oliver shook his head, muscle ticking wildly in his jaw. "Why won't you listen to me?" he bit out in frustration, the beeping from his wrist monitor getting louder. "Why can't you see how much danger you're in? How much you need me to protect you?"

Felicity put a hesitant hand to Oliver's sweaty cheek, stroking it. "Oliver, you need to calm down. You're working yourself up into a state over nothing."

"He cut you, how is that nothing?" said Oliver in horror. "The guy put a knife to your throat and cut you."

"And I'm sure he feels very badly about that now," said Felicity quickly. "At least he will when he regains consciousness."

"I can't let anything happen to you," said Oliver in anguish, his shaking getting worse.

Felicity brought her other hand up, cupping his face. "Nothing is going to happen to me, Oliver. I promise you."

Oliver closed his eyes and groaned. "It almost did."

"But you saved me," she said softly. "You always save me and then I save you. That's how we roll." Oliver opened his eyes and looked at her and Felicity smiled. "We're a team. A really, really good team and we're going to get each other through this, just like we always have and always will." She felt some of the tension leave Oliver's body as she stroked his cheeks with her thumbs.

"Felicity," he said in quiet anguish, "I can't lose you. I can't live without you."

Felicity gave a sad little smile, wishing for all the world that was really true and not just a symptom of being poisoned. "You're not going to lose me," she promised him quietly. "I'll always be here for you, Oliver." _Even when you get over this and fall for another girl_. It was kind of a depressing thought but one Felicity had to continue to remind herself about. Oliver had been programmed into thinking she was the only woman who mattered but Felicity knew that it was going to pass. Diggle was going to find some way to counteract this thing or maybe Oliver would just eventually get the XR-320 out of his system but either way, Felicity knew Oliver was going to get over this. Felicity could only hope she'd be able to do the same.

Oliver buried his head in her lap and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I'd do anything to protect you," he vowed unevenly. "Anything, Felicity."

She sighed and rubbed his still sweaty back. "I know but I really don't want you hurting people for me."

His hold on her tightened. "Then they shouldn't try and take you away from me," said Oliver, his voice low and full and menace.

"Again, I really do think the guy was just after your car," Felicity felt Oliver tense against her and continued on quickly, "but it's over now." He relaxed a little again. "And now I think it's a really good idea that we're getting out of town, away from people, just the two of us."

"Just the two of us," repeated Oliver unevenly. "I want that. I need that." He lifted his head from her lap and fixed Felicity with a semi-desperate look. "I need you."

"It's going to be alright, Oliver," she promised him unsteadily. "You're going to get over this and everything will be like it used to be."

"Just don't leave me," he pleaded with her raggedly. "Felicity, I can't do this without you."

"You won't have to," said Felicity sincerely. "We're in this together and we'll get out of this together. Like I said, we're a team."

Oliver's gaze drifted back to the cut on her neck and his expression became haunted. Felicity couldn't imagine what he was feeling. The toxin in his system had given him a pathological concern for her well-being and that level of anxiety was clearly taking its toll on Oliver.

"We need to get going," said Felicity softly. "Get back in the car, Oliver. You'll feel better once we're out of the city."

Oliver looked reluctant to let her go but he stood up anyway. "Will you believe me now when I tell you that you're in danger?" he asked abruptly. "That you have to listen to me so I can keep you safe?"

Felicity was more worried that the only person here in real danger was Oliver but she could see he didn't want to hear that. "I believe in you, Oliver," she said simply. "I always have and I always will."

"And you'll trust me to keep you safe," he pushed her.

"Always," said Felicity, even though she knew that it was her trying to keep him safe this time round but Oliver obviously needed to think that he was the one doing the protecting and that was fine by Felicity. Some of the tension seemed to leave Oliver's body at her assurances even though he still didn't look well to Felicity.

"Always," he agreed emphatically and then was walking around to his side of the car.

Felicity glanced at her watch and hoped Diggle was making progress with tracking down Coates and a possible neutralizing agent for the XR-320. If there was no such thing or Diggle couldn't get a hold of the stuff in time, Felicity had grave concerns about how this was all going to end.

#

Roy parked his motorbike in the alleyway next to where Diggle had parked his car. He took off his helmet and walked over to where Diggle was getting out of the car.

"You're late," noted an unimpressed Diggle.

"Two minutes isn't late," protested Roy.

"Never join the military, kid."

"Not high on my list of stuff to do," said Roy wryly. He looked back over his shoulder at the imposing high rise behind him. "Okay, so, what's the plan here? Why do we even want in to this place to begin with?"

"There's a woman I need to track down."

Roy gave a little smirk. "Won't tweet you back, huh?"

Diggle pulled out a picture from his coat pocket and showed it to Roy. "Hilarious. This is the woman – Lyla Coates."

Roy looked at the grainy picture of the woman with black and white hair. "And you need to get to her because?"

"She has information on something I need." Diggle's expression hardened. "At least I hope she does."

"Any particular reason why I'm not getting the full story on this?" asked Roy in vague annoyance. He hated how the others still treated him like a second strand player sometimes. It was like Oliver, Diggle and Felicity had their own little club and while they'd let him hang around, he wasn't quite cool enough to join the inner sanctum.

"It's not important."

"If there is a chance I'm going to get eaten, it's important."

"You're not going to get eaten. Stop saying that. Now, here's what I need you to do." Diggle inclined his head towards Titan Tower. "The weakest point of the Tower is the air conditioning ducts. It's the only thing which isn't heavily guarded. I need you to get into the ducts and then I'll direct you where to go."

"And why am I the one crawling through the dusty, mould-infested ducts?" interrupted Roy. "Why can't you do that and I'll do the directing?"

"It's the reason I asked you to help with this job."

"What reason?"

"The fact that you're—"

Roy's eyes narrowed. "I'm what?"

"You know."

"No, I don't know."

Diggle gave a little shrug. "A little on the petite side."

Roy's eyes widened. "Excuse me?" he squawked. "In what universe am I considered petite?"

"I just meant in comparison to me," said Diggle calmly.

"There are apartment blocks which are petite in comparison to you," said Roy in outrage. "Women are petite, I'm finely-toned and lithe."

"Okay, you're finely-toned and lithe."

"Unbelievable," snapped Roy. "You ask me for my help and insult me at the same time. What the hell is that about?"

"It's not an insult," protested Diggle. "I'm just saying you're more physically equipped to fit into tight spaces than me. It's a fact, not an insult."

"The reason you can't fit is because you're built like some kind of circus freak," grumbled Roy. "Normal people have necks, you know."

"I have a neck," said Diggle flatly.

"No, you don't. You go ears and then shoulders. Your neck is completely MIA."

Diggle let out an annoyed breath. "Fine, I'm sorry I called you petite. I won't do it again."

"That doesn't matter now because I know you'll be thinking it," said Roy sulkily.

Diggle shook his head. "And this is why you should never work with children or animals."

"I'm not a child," snapped Roy.

"Then stop acting like one."

"Hey, I'm here doing you a favor and you won't even tell me why, so you can ease back on the name calling," said Roy indignantly.

"You called me a circus freak," said Diggle flatly.

Roy smiled sweetly. "That's not an insult, that's just a fact."

Diggle rolled his eyes. "I am getting too old for this crap." He scowled. "And, we're wasting time. I need you in those air conditioning vents and then—"

Roy held up his hand. "Don't tell me the rest of the plan. I already hate the beginning of it, I'm pretty sure I'm only going to hate the rest of it more. Just tell me as I go along and then I'll have less time to think about how much your plan sucks."

"You're quite the team player, aren't you?" asked Diggle dryly.

"Hey, I'm not the one being Miss Susie Secrets about this little fun day out. Just be grateful I'm willing to do this at all."

"I'd be more grateful if you were actually doing it and not just blowing smoke up my ass," said Diggle flatly.

"Great pep talk, Coach," said Roy sarcastically. "Okay, where is the entrance to these ducts? Let's get this over with."

Diggle handed him a communicator and pointed across the street. "You see that grate in the side alley by the Tower? That's your access point."

Roy eyed the men walking up and down in front of the entrance to the Tower, obviously heavily armed. "And what about the guards?"

"Avoid them."

"Helpful, thanks."

"No problem."

Roy pulled up the hood on his jacket and stuck his hands in the pocket. "What happens if I get into trouble?"

"In the ducts?"

"Yeah."

"Then that would be a bummer."

Roy gave him a sideways look. "You're not going to come in after me?"

"I don't fit, remember? Circus freak."

"So, I'm on my own?"

"Only in the sense that you don't have anyone else."

Roy grimaced. "Awesome." He took a deep breath. "Let's get this over with."

"I'd appreciate that. We're burning daylight here."

Roy gave a grunt and headed off across the road. Fortunately as he drew closer to the grill which was the opening of the air conditioning vent, there was a delivery to the front entrance of the tower which drew all of the guard's attention. Roy slipped into the side alley, unobserved and pulled off the grill protecting the opening to the ducts and then hauled himself inside. Just as he'd expected it was hot, dark and dusty. "How much of this do I have to crawl through?" he asked.

"Until I tell you to stop," came Diggle's reply in his ear. "Keep going straight ahead until you come to an intersection and then go right."

Roy's hand slipped in something as he crawled along on his hands and knees. "This place is disgusting," he complained.

"What did you expect?"

"I expected to be doing something cool and heroic," said Roy, giving a little shudder as he crossed paths with the biggest rat he'd ever seen and coming from the Glades, that was saying something. The rat eyeballed him and then just casually scurried its way past Roy, between his legs, obviously unafraid of him. "And something with less of a rat flavor to it."

"A few rats never hurt anyone," said Diggle dismissively.

"Didn't they cause that big plague in the middle ages that wiped out all those people?"

"That was the fleas on the backs of the rats, not the actual rats themselves which spread the Bubonic Plague."

"It seems like they were in it together," argued Roy as he came across a couple more rats who again, appeared unconcerned by his presence. "If I get something from crawling around in this place, I'm going to be pissed."

"You should probably stop talking now."

"Why?" asked Roy, lowering his voice. "You think someone might be able to hear me?"

"No, you're just annoying me."

"Oh, so sorry to annoy you as you sit in your nice, clean car, breathing in air that isn't loaded with Legionnaire's Disease."

"Do you usually complain this much and I just haven't notice before?" asked Diggle in vague annoyance. "Take the next left when you come to it."

Roy kept crawling and followed Diggle's instructions. "I'm just finding it hard to believe that this was the best plan you could come up with."

"I'm going for the subtle approach, rather than the full frontal tact which would have ended in a high body count."

Roy gave a bit of a grunt, actually seeing the point in that. Anything to do with Titan Tower was going to be a suicide mission, so, a quiet entrance seemed like the way to go. Not that he'd admit that to Diggle, of course. That guy didn't need any more validation about how great he was. Roy kept making his way through the ducting for about another ten minutes, following Diggle's instructions and then finally he was granted freedom.

"There should be a grill on your left," Diggle instructed him. "You can get out there. You'll be in a maintenance room."

Roy quickly removed the grill and jumped down out of the duct. He landed on his feet and looked around at the room which seemed to be a large storage area for all sorts of boxes and equipment, along with buckets and brooms. Out of the corner of his eye Roy caught a movement in the shadows and he instinctively reached for the small crossbow he'd brought with him. A figure emerged from the shadows, dressed in a black uniform and Roy deftly fired at him before he could raise the alarm. His arrow caught the man in the shoulder and immediately released a gas which would render the other man unconscious in seconds. The guard staggered back, eyes rolling back in his head and then he was collapsing backwards. Unfortunately, as the man had fallen back, he'd run into a couple of brooms leant up against the wall in the corner. They tumbled to the ground and one got caught against a nearby railing as the man crashed down on it. Roy looked on in horror as the end of one of the brooms promptly pierced the man's back as he fell back onto it, running himself through with the end of the broom in a freak accident. Roy edged up to the man who now had a broom end sticking out of his chest and was clearly dead. He grimaced. "Sorry, man, that was not the plan."

"Roy, what's going on?"

"Nothing," said Roy, deciding Diggle didn't need to know about this little mishap. "What happens next?"

"I've got a man on the inside and he's going to meet you any minute now," said Diggle. "He'll put you in a laundry basket and get you into Coates' laboratory."

Roy looked down at the dead man at his feet. "Ah, this man on the inside… he wouldn't happen to be a guard, would he?"

"Yes, he should be there very soon."

There was a long pause as Roy tried to work out how to break the latest turn of events to the other man. "So," he said at last, "just out of interest, do you have a backup plan at all?"

"Why would I need a backup plan?"

Roy wrinkled his nose. "You're going to laugh when I tell you this."

As it turned out, Diggle didn't laugh… not even a little bit.

**A/N****: Oh dear, Team Riggle has taken a bit of a hit, hasn't it? Never mind, teams take time to come together. I'm sure their next plan will go swimmingly. Well, I say sure… **

**Now, the next chapter, what can I spoil? Hmm… well, I will say that I try out a new rating in the FPR scale in the next chapter. The chapter will be a preceded by a M warning, just a heads up. We'll take this smut thing out of a little test drive and see how everyone feels about it, eh? **

**Toodles…**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N****: In a real rush to update tonight, so I won't dither. **

**I will just give a heads up that this is a more 'adult' chapter, in case you didn't read my last A/N, so, you've been warned. ;) **

**Also, another heads up – I'm working earlies all this week, which means getting up at 330am… by the time I get home from work, the muse is usually knackered, so I don't know how much writing I'll get down… which translates to I don't know how many updates you get this coming week (I'm also working the weekend, both days). So, bear with me if the updates are a little bit scanty… unless you break through my willpower and beg me endlessly, of course, then I'll probably cave. I'm weak like that. Lol **

**So, the chapter, read on if you dare… **

**CHAPTER EIGHTEEN**

Oliver came awake from a dreamless sleep and took a moment to realize where he was. He was sitting in his car in the passenger seat but the car wasn't moving and he was alone. Oliver blinked a couple of times before looking out the window to see where Felicity was. They were pulled up on the shoulder of a dirt road, surrounded by a forest of trees. He didn't remember at what point he'd fallen asleep or how long he'd been out for but it had definitely been long enough of them to be well clear of the city, judging by their surroundings. Oliver could see out the window that there was an angry storm gathering. Purple-grey storm clouds were gathering low in the sky and there was a tension in the air which always signaled a big storm. Oliver climbed out of the car and looked around the area, the afternoon light prematurely fading thanks to the oncoming storm. He couldn't see Felicity but he could smell her. Without hesitation Oliver followed her scent into the woods, tracking her easily and it only took him a couple of minutes walking up a gentle incline to find Felicity standing in the middle of a small clearing on a flat rock about half a foot tall. She had a map out in front of her and a little torch in her mouth, helping her read in the growing gloom. "Felicity?"

Felicity started and almost fell off the rock.

Oliver quickly covered the small distance between them and grabbed her arm to steady her. "Careful."

Felicity took the small flashlight from her mouth and composed herself. "Thanks." She frowned. "Sorry, I thought it'd be okay to leave you for a few minutes. You were sound asleep."

Oliver shook his head. "I'm fine."

"Really?" she asked a little skeptically.

Oliver thought about that question after his melt down over the would-be carjacker and Felicity and nodded, a little surprised himself. "Yeah, I am. I wasn't stressed that you weren't there. I was just wondering where you were." He gave a wry smile. "The normal level of wondering, not that manic kind I've been subjecting you to the last day or so." Oliver released a relieved breath to realize it was true. "I think I've turned a corner. The XR-320 must be working its way out of my system. My head doesn't hurt. I don't feel anxious or stressed. I can think clearly."

Felicity shone the flashlight in his face, looking at him intently.

Oliver squinted into the light and held up his hand to block it. "Ah, Felicity, do you mind?"

"Sorry," she said distractedly, still studying him intently from the vantage point on top of the rock which put her closer to eye level with him. "You do look better. You're not sweating so much and you're not all flushed."

"I really think I'm through the worst of it." Oliver felt completely normal. It was a huge relief to him because he'd been more than a little worried over the side-effects of his gassing getting any worse. "You know, I think we should head back to Starling City. With me feeling better, I can actually be useful again and help Diggle find that Coates woman."

Felicity made a face. "I don't know," she said slowly. "Maybe it's better to be safe than sorry about this. I think we should stick to the plan." Felicity rolled her eyes. "And besides, I don't know if I can get us back to Starling City from here because I'm not exactly sure where here is."

Oliver arched an eyebrow. "We're lost?"

"No," huffed Felicity, "we're not lost. We're somewhere on this map." She waved it around and then screwed up her nose. "Probably somewhere on this map," she conceded. Felicity shone the light at his face. "And one crack from you about women and maps and a little dose of poisonous gas is going to be the least of your worries," she threatened him.

Oliver screwed up his face as the flashlight was shone in his eyes again. "I'm not going to make any jokes."

"Good," grumbled Felicity, "because I'm usually very good with maps but I don't know, what can you do with dirt roads? It's all trees, trees, shrubs, indistinguishable road kill animal and then more trees. There are no road signs or landmarks. That's why I parked the car and went looking for higher ground, to get my bearings."

Oliver looked down at the rock she was standing on. "And that's your version of higher ground?"

"Yes," said Felicity a little defensively. "So?"

Oliver tried to hold back his smile. "It's basically a pebble. It doesn't even make you as tall as me."

Felicity pouted. "Well, I'm not exactly dressed to be rappelling a tree." She waved a hand at the tight black skirt she was wearing.

Oliver's gaze swept over her outfit of white blouse and black skirt and had to agree. "You rappel down, not up."

"If you can rappel down, then it's simple logic that you can rappel up," she argued. "If you're doing an action and that action has a downward motion, it only makes sense that it has to have an upward one too. Like sitting, you can sit down or sit up. How can an action only have one possible direction?"

"You can't rappel up," said Oliver firmly. "It's just not a thing."

"That's dumb."

"Duly noted." Oliver looked up as the sky suddenly lit up in a near blinding flash of lightning, followed seconds later by an almighty crash of thunder.

Felicity jumped at the incredibly loud noise and Oliver moved to steady her again, his hand going to her hip. "I think you should get off that thing, it's a disaster waiting to happen."

"I thought you said it was just a pebble," she challenged him.

"Somehow you're making the molehill into a mountain," said Oliver wryly. He put his other hand on Felicity's other hip. "Here." Oliver went to guide Felicity down but when she didn't immediately follow his gentle direction, he looked at her to see she was staring at him with a pensive expression. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Felicity immediately shook her head. "Nothing," she said quickly, gaze skittering away from his.

"Felicity."

"It's nothing." She put her hands over his to make him let go. "I'm okay. I don't need any help."

Oliver stubbornly didn't let go of her waist. "It's better to be safe than sorry. A really smart friend told me that, kinda recently in fact." Felicity bit her lip and looked away and Oliver was suddenly worried. "Felicity, it's okay, you don't have to keep your distance. I told you, I think the toxin is all but through my system. You're completely safe with me. I'm not going to go and jump on you like I did last night." When she didn't immediately respond, Oliver couldn't let it go. It was too important. "Felicity, look at me." She reluctantly made eye contact with him and Oliver's hands tightened on her hips, wanting to straighten this out between them. "I need to know that you trust me," he said in a low voice. "I need to know that you feel safe with me. I can't live with the fact that you might be scared of me. I meant every word I said today. I'd die before I hurt you, you have to know that." Oliver pressed his lips together in distress when Felicity still didn't respond, she just stared back at him, almost eye to eye and he couldn't work out what she was thinking. "Please, Felicity," he said unhappily. "Say something, anything, just don't shut me out. I know it's been a bit weird between us the last couple of days but I'm through the other side now, I'm much better. We're friends and—"

Oliver didn't get to finish his sentence as Felicity suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his. He gave a little gasp of surprise, lips parting and then Felicity's tongue was inside his mouth and every promise he'd made himself about slowing things down between them dissolved into nothingness. The only important thing in the world now was the woman in his arms. Oliver wrapped his arms around her waist, returning her heated kisses with every fiber of his being. He couldn't think, he could only feel and right then Oliver felt like he'd been hit by one of the bolts of lightning which were still crackling away over their heads. Felicity broke the kiss just as abruptly as she started it and Oliver was bereft. "No," he groaned, moving in to continue their kisses. Felicity's hands were in his hair, pulling on the short strands to stop him. Oliver gave a grunt of frustration as he was forced to pull back a little but then he was gazing into Felicity's oddly determined gaze.

"I don't want to be your friend," she said unevenly.

Oliver's eyes widened a little as he could see what Felicity did want in her eyes. "I don't want to be your friend either," he conceded hoarsely. It was the first time he'd allowed himself to acknowledge out loud that a simple friendship with Felicity was no longer enough for him. He wanted more of her, in every possible way.

Felicity's gaze dropped to his lips. "Good," she whispered before moving her hands to his chest and curling them in the front of his shirt and pulling him down so their lips met in a hard kiss.

In the back of his head Oliver wondered what it was that had suddenly changed Felicity's attitude towards him but he was a little frightened to ask because then she might second guess herself and stop what was happening between them. And despite all the lectures Oliver had been giving himself about trying to do the right thing by Felicity throughout this whole ordeal, Oliver couldn't bring himself to put a halt to this. After all, he'd meant what he'd said to Felicity, he was feeling better, the effects of the gas was gone from his system and the only thing left between them was what had always been there. And it was far more intoxicating than any gas. Oliver dragged his mouth from hers, peppering heated kisses down Felicity's neck. His hands went to low down on her back, fingers spreading out so Oliver could feel the beginning of the swell of Felicity's buttocks. He gave a low groan, backing her up until Felicity's back was against a nearby tree which allowed Oliver to grind his body against hers which felt both amazing and frustrating as hell. There was still too much separating them and Felicity must have felt the same way as she simultaneously pulled his shirt out of the waistband of his pants and hooked a leg up around his backside, inviting Oliver closer still. Oliver didn't hesitate to take up that invitation, pushing himself between her legs and giving a violent shudder as he was enveloped by the warmth he found there.

"Felicity," he moaned in frustration, hands pushing up her tight skirt, fingers finding their way up under her panties to cup those perfect bottom cheeks.

Felicity's hands were up under his shirt, nails raking down his back. "Don't stop," she panted in his ear. "I need you inside of me, Oliver, please don't stop."

Oliver instinctively ground his lower body against hers at that request and groaned loudly as the blood surging around his body and made a beeline for one decidedly aching area south of the border. "Felicity," he gasped, feeling any bit of control leaving him, "I want you so much." Their lowers bodies had struck up a rhythm all of their own, surging against one another again and again and pushing Oliver into a frenzy of need.

"Then take me," implored Felicity huskily. Her hand slipped down the front of his pants and Oliver almost screamed from the intense pleasure of her cupping his throbbing hardness.

He could barely breathe, unable to catch his breath but oxygen didn't even feel like a necessity anymore, as long as Felicity kept on touching him. Oliver's hands tightened on Felicity's bottom cheeks, needing her more in that moment then he thought humanly possible. She arched her back, pressing her breasts into his and Oliver lost the last of his self-control. They tumbled to the ground, a tangle of legs and hands, Oliver making sure he broke Felicity's fall but then he was quickly rolling over so he was on top of her, covering her body with his. "I love you," he groaned into their renewed kisses. "God, I love you so much," he said in anguish, needing to Felicity to know just what she meant to him in that moment.

Felicity gave a gasp and broke their kiss. "Oliver," she said in amazement at his declaration, looking up at him wide-eyed.

"I love you," he repeated urgently, needing Felicity to believe him. As much as he needed her body right then, Oliver wanted far more than that from Felicity. "I'm in love with you, Felicity." He held her gaze fiercely, willing her to believe him and please God, feel the same way.

"Oliver," she whispered shakily.

He held his breath, suddenly scared what she might say next.

A slow smile spread across her face. "I love you," said Felicity breathlessly.

Oliver felt a shot of intense pleasure rocket through his entire body at hearing Felicity say those words back to him. They'd come so far in such a short amount of time but really, they'd been building towards this from the first moment they met and it all felt so completely natural to Oliver, like this was always how it was meant to be. Oliver bent his head to kiss her again, too happy in that moment to find words to express what he was feeling, deciding on actions being a better option. Oliver couldn't remember ever feeling this happy in his life but as his lips touched Felicity's, he felt her go rigid underneath him.

"Oliver!" exclaimed Felicity and this time there was no mistaking the fear he could hear in her voice.

Oliver tensed, not knowing what was happening, just knowing it was something bad…

**A/N****: Oh yeah, and this chapter is a cliffhanger, I forgot. Now I feel really bad about not updating straight away. **

**Now, for those keeping score at home, I'd give this a solid 5 on the FPR, maybe a soft 6 (of a scale which goes up to 12). I mean, there is more detail to it but it's not like a full on biology lesson or anything. I'm trying to keep it classy and titillating without it being clinical by having a lot of emotion in it. I think emotion is the key. I want to know what the characters are feeling when these things are happening, not just the physicality of it all. That's the beauty of the written word, you can delve into that without dialogue, unlike with visual medias. **

**Alright, see you in the next chapter and we'll see what Felicity sees… I'm sure it'll be fine… no really, tickety boo all the way. ;) **


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N****: Okay, yes, I acknowledge I left off at a pointed point in the story, so I'm posting this chapter now as way of an apology. It's not that long (that's what she said) but it will get you over the hump (that's what she said). **

**Sorry, having trouble concentrating. My dog is barking like a crazy thing through the fence. She is of a nervous disposition, is my Tilly Pearl. We came up with the idea that if she could see outside the gate, then she'd see there was nothing to worry about. So, I had a square cut in my gate and a decorative piece of wrought iron installed so she could see out. It looks great… but a big fail on the settling down Pearl front. Now she can see who/what exactly she is hurling obscenities at. Nothing escapes her acerbic tongue now… neighbor's kids playing in the street, the ice cream truck (particularly hates him), the postman, that cat which likes to rub its butt up against my mailbox, a leaf… they're all in the firing line. She hurls such insults as 'your butt doesn't stink!' and 'you don't like having sex in public places!' to the passersby's and foliage. I don't think she really grasps the fact that these verbal assaults aren't quite as scathing to humans as she'd like to think... and leaves don't have butts, so they don't really care one way or the other. **

**Oddly enough Pearl and Hank get on quite well. I think it's because they can both lick their own butts… common ground. Maybe if all the world leaders were able to lick their own bums, the world wouldn't be in the state it is. Food for thought. It'd certainly make those international summits more of a photo opportunity. **

**Anyways, as much as I'm sure you're fascinated by talk of my dog's butt (still working off the premise your lives are as small and uninteresting as mine) but I'm guessing you're here for the chapter. I'm only two days into my morning stint and I already feel like I'm coming down with something (AARRRGGGHHH!) so yeah, not firing on all four cylinders really. But still, I have listened to your pleas for the next chapter and I am here, updating, just to make my little ducklings happy. :D **

**And I hope you will still be happy after reading this chapter… if not, well, gee, I don't actually have a plan for that. Drink heavily maybe? I know that works for Hank but then, a lot of things work for Hank that a normal human being should probably shy away from… like the fact he's sexually attracted to fire… and electrical appliances... it's essentially the reason I can't have nice things. . **

**CHAPTER NINETEEN**

Felicity was looking past him, over his shoulder, eyes full of terror and suddenly Oliver felt rough hands grabbing him and dragging him off Felicity, tossing him aside like he was weighed less than nothing. Oliver flew across the air, crashing into a tree and falling to the ground with a painful thud. He lifted his head, shaking it an attempt to clear it and it was then that he saw the dark, shadowy figure standing over a cowering Felicity. "No!" he yelled out, leaping to his feet and dashing to her side. The man swung around, swiping at Oliver and knocking him off his feet again in a display of superhuman strength. Oliver gave a grunt of pain as he was tossed like a doll twenty feet away but it didn't stop him getting up again, particularly when he heard Felicity scream his name.

"Oliver!"

The dark scene was illuminated by a brilliant flash of lightening from above and Oliver saw Felicity being dragged to her feet, the man throwing an arm around her waist and holding a large, menacing knife to her throat. Oliver rushed to Felicity's aid, his eyes going wide as another flash of lightening revealed the attacker's identity as that of the man who'd tried to carjack them earlier. A thousand questions crowded Oliver's mind. How had the man found them? What did he want with Felicity? In the end though, his questions didn't matter, only that he got Felicity away from this lunatic. "Let her go!" he demanded loudly.

The man cocked his head, looking at Oliver with cool indifference, the blade of the knife still to Felicity's neck.

"Oliver," whimpered a clearly terrified Felicity.

He held up a hand to her. "It's alright," Oliver said urgently. "It's okay, Felicity. I'm not going to let him hurt you." He edged closer, eyes on the man. "Listen to me, it's me you've got a problem with. Let her go, this is between us."

The man gave a cold little smile and then in a very slow, deliberate action, he drew the knife across Felicity's throat. It all seemed to happen in slow motion to Oliver. He saw the man run the knife across Felicity's skin but was frozen to the spot, unable to move a muscle. Felicity's eyes went wide with shock as blood spurted from her severed arteries and veins. Oliver was suddenly splattered in Felicity's blood, the warm, stickiness of it striking him in the face and chest. Some of it ended up in his mouth, Felicity's life blood a sharp, metallic taste on his tongue even as the rest of that blood dripped from his face and soaked into his shirt. "No!" screamed Oliver hoarsely as Felicity crumpled to the ground, eyes open but unseeing in death. Oliver needed to get to her but he couldn't move. "No, Felicity, no, no!" Panic swamped his entire being at the horrific scene in front of him and Oliver could feel himself wanting to start screaming and never stop.

"Oliver… Oliver!"

Oliver jerked awake at the feeling of his arm being shaken violently. He sucked in deep breaths into oxygen-starved lungs, trying to understand what was happening to him.

"Oliver," said Felicity anxiously, "are you alright? You're having a bad dream. You need to wake up."

Oliver turned his head and stared at Felicity blankly as she attempted to wake him up while still drive the car. "Felicity," he rasped in disbelief, not sure if he could believe his eyes. Oliver had just watched Felicity have her throat cut, die right in front of his eyes. He brought a shaking hand up to her throat, brushing away her hair so he could see for himself that she was alright. There was still the small mark from the carjackers knife from earlier that day but other than that Felicity's skin was perfectly intact. Oliver ran his fingers all over her neck, making sure that what he was seeing was real.

Felicity put her hand up to his, guiding the car to a stop and turning off the engine. "Oliver, it's okay, I'm alright. What are you looking for?"

"I-you were hurt, I saw him cut your throat," stammered Oliver, still trying to wake up properly from his nightmare.

"No, it was just a scratch, remember?" Felicity turned in her seat to look at him, worry etching her pretty face. "Nothing happened to me."

Oliver couldn't take his eyes off her throat, convinced if he looked away for a second then her wound would return. It made no sense but everything about his dream had seemed to utterly real that it was almost impossible to believe none of it had happened. Suddenly it dawned on Oliver… none of it had happened. Not Felicity being murdered and not everything which had come before it. How was it possible to be so relieved you could hardly breathe but also be completely and utterly destroyed at the same time?

"Oliver, what's wrong?" asked Felicity anxiously. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Oliver drew in an unsteady breath and shook his head. "I-I'm sorry. I just got confused for a moment."

"From the bad dream?" she asked sympathetically. "It must have been horrible. You were moaning in your sleep. It took me forever to wake you up. What happened in your dream?"

Oliver blinked. "I don't remember," he lied hoarsely. "It's all a blur."

Felicity still looked worried. "Okay."

Oliver dropped his hand from her neck and sat back in his seat. He looked out the window, trying to get his bearings. Echoes of his dream were coming back to him, putting Oliver on edge as he scanned the darkening woods for possible threats. A storm was brewing overhead, just like in his dream. What else was going to be just like his dream? "Where are we? Are we lost?"

Felicity gave him an unimpressed look. "You're having a bad day, so I'm going to ignore the chauvinistic and vaguely anti-sematic overtones of that question. Geez, my people get lost in the desert for forty years one time and suddenly we're no good at navigation. Of course we're not lost. We've got GPS and I can tell my left from my right."

Oliver looked back at Felicity and grimaced. "Sorry."

"We're about fifteen minutes from the cabins. Not long to go now." Felicity frowned at him. "You just have to hang on for a little bit longer." She touched a hand to his face. "You're burning up," Felicity fretted. "We need to get your temperature down."

"I'm fine," said Oliver and wished his assertion didn't sound so weak.

Felicity turned back in her seat and started up the car again. "Yeah, well, I think we have different understandings of the word fine. You're getting worse, Oliver."

"I just need to lie down for a bit," said Oliver unsteadily, glancing out the window as the road in front of them was lit up by a flash of lightening. Being in the car with Felicity used to have more of a calming effect on Oliver but now he was finding it wasn't enough to simply be sitting next to her. Without even thinking about it Oliver stretched out his hand and rested it on the back of Felicity's neck. The contact with her skin was like instant pain relief from the relentless throbbing in his head. His fingers curled around her neck lightly as Felicity cast him a vaguely flustered look. "Sorry," he said unevenly but didn't remove his hand. "I just need, I need to be—"

"It's okay," said Felicity quickly. "You don't have to explain."

Oliver moved his fingers gently back and forth over the soft skin of Felicity's neck, her hair brushing the back of his hand. "I just need to know I'm not freaking you out," he said unhappily. "You didn't sign up for any of this." It was hard to know what Felicity must be making of his erratic behavior because Oliver was having more than a little issue with it himself.

Felicity gave him a quick, lop-sided smile. "I think when my first interaction with you involved the words 'bullet-riddled' that was then quickly followed up by you leaking blood all over the backseat of my car." She cocked her head. "Which, now that I think about it, also had a bullet-riddled theme going on with it, I pretty much knew I was leaving myself open to a broad range of experiences when I let you into my life." Another reassuring smile from her as she patted his leg. "It's okay, Oliver. The only thing which is freaking me out is driving in this weather. I feel like we're driving right into the eye of the storm." She hesitated. "Or is that heart… or belly even? I'm not really up on the anatomy of storms… which I'm just starting to realize seems to have a lot of body parts to it. I wonder why that is? Fires don't get body parts."

Oliver listened to Felicity thinking out loud and felt his blood pressure drop from her familiar ramblings. He stared at her profile, trying to wrap his head around the fact that she was still with him. Felicity was smart, really smart and a smart person would have turned tail and run the first time he told her one of his ridiculous lies and certainly after he put her life in danger. But not Felicity. Whatever being involved in his world threw at her, she stayed the course, refusing to leave even when there seemed like no hope. Not for the first time Oliver had to wonder why that was and definitely not for the first time he found himself hoping he was at least part of the reason.

"_I love you." _

Her softly spoken words came back to Oliver from his dream. It seemed impossibly real to him, the memory of Felicity telling him she loved him and it was hard for Oliver to remember that such a thing had never happened. It was a depressing thought because out of all the confusion of that dream, Oliver knew there was one thing he wasn't confused about. He was totally and completely in love with the woman sitting beside him and had been for some time but he'd been too stubborn to examine those feelings properly before all of this had happened. Now Oliver had been forced to confront what Felicity meant to him and it wasn't a real shock to discover that she meant everything. He moved his hand restlessly against the smooth flesh of her neck, that feeling of needing to protect her and keep her safe all but overwhelming him again. No matter what came out of all of this, Oliver knew there was only one thing which truly mattered, that Felicity was kept safe. Whatever it took, he was going to make sure that happened. Losing her wasn't an option he could contemplate without breaking out into a cold sweat and while the XR-320 might be heightening his physiological response to that thought, Oliver knew deep down that his feelings were his own about Felicity and nothing to do with the toxin in his system. The only trouble was, he doubted that he'd get Felicity to believe him right then. Oliver had a strong compulsion to tell Felicity how he felt right there and then but knew she'd discount his feelings because of the gas. It was as frustrating as hell and Oliver cursed himself for not having been smart enough to work out his feelings before all this had happened.

"What do you think?" Felicity turned and gave him a quick, expectant look before turning her attention back to the road.

"I think I'm an idiot," said Oliver without hesitation.

She made a tutting sound. "You're not an idiot. I don't know why storms have body parts either. If you're an idiot, so am I."

"You're perfect," countered Oliver, unable to keep his eyes off her.

Felicity laughed. "Yup, that's me alright, Felicity the perfect. I can't tell you how many times people have called me that," she said in wry amusement.

Oliver knew she was being self-deprecating and wished she'd take his words at face value.

"Oh wait, yes I can," she continued on blithely. "Never. That's how many times."

"Then they're the idiots," said Oliver simply, including himself in that sweeping generalization.

Felicity bit at her bottom lip and looked a little rattled. "The XR-320 is making you set kind of a low bar when it comes to me," she said, trying to brush off his words. "I'm thinking this might be a great time to ask for a raise," said Felicity teasingly.

"I already gave you a raise," he reminded her indulgently, finding himself feeling better the more they talked. His muscles ached less, the sweating improved. "You yelled at me."

Felicity rolled her eyes. "Because that was a ridiculous raise for an even more ridiculous reason." She wrinkled her nose. "And I was only joking about the raise. I'd never take advantage of you while you're in this condition, Oliver." Felicity turned and fixed him with a serious look. "_Never_."

"You're not taking advantage of me, Felicity." Although Oliver wished like hell she would. Over and over again, until neither one of them had any strength left in their body to do anything other than lie naked in each other's arms. He moved a little uncomfortably in his chair as the thought and accompanying mental images sent a surge of blood to his lap.

"We're nearly there," Felicity announced, glancing at the GPS system. "Here's hoping Digg is making some progress with getting to Coates."

The mention of the other man's name had Oliver tensing. It was a natural enough question for Felicity to ponder but the sound of Diggle's name on her lips was jarring to Oliver. He closed his eyes and let his fingers thread through the softness of Felicity's hair, willing himself to bring his rampant emotions about other men and Felicity under control. Diggle wasn't anywhere near Felicity, there was no need to overreact to a nonexistent threat. Oliver swallowed hard and was just grateful they were going to a place where there was only going to be the two of them. Right then it sounded like paradise to him.

**A/N****: Yes, it was all a dream! As if I'd spend all this time making Oliver sick only to cure him with a Nanna Nap. Lol And, an easy coming together for these two where they just make love and say their ILY's… yeah, not my style either. I make my poor readers work for every bit of forward motion for my couples. Felicity is nowhere near coming to term with Oliver's feelings for her… lllooonnnggg way to go yet, peeps. ;) If memory serves, we arrive at the cabin in the next chapter and oh yes, catch up with Riggle to see how they're handling Broom-Gate. Should be fun. Hope to see you all then. :D **


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N****: Hey guys, trying to gauge the response to the last chapter (thank you very much to those who did leave reviews – much love to all :D ), so I'm trying to work out my ducklings response to my little fake out there… are you happy, grumpy, sleepy… gassy, are you gassy… it's gassy, isn't it? One of the lesser known dwarves… for obvious reasons. The fake out is all about giving a taste of what is to come… while still toying mercilessly with your emotions, just like any evil cult leader… ahem… sorry, slip of the tongue, story teller will do. O:) **

**And yes, I know you're all frustrated beyond belief when it comes to Felicity stubbornly not acknowledging the validity of Oliver's feelings. Bad news on that front – it's going to get a whole lot worse before it gets better. You have been warned. I think of it this way… Oliver is going crazy in one direction, Felicity is going crazy in the other, to try and compensate… overcompensate really. She's so frightened to acknowledge what is happening between them because what if, when (or should I say if *insert maniacal laughter) Oliver gets better and his feelings are no longer as intense? So, Felicity's like a little salmon swimming (aggressively floating) upstream to spawn (not spawn) when it comes to acknowledging the validity of the emotions between them. And our girl, she's a fighter, particularly when she thinks she's doing it to protect Oliver. But then, that'll be Oliver's job to convince her differently… as it should be. ;) **

**Latest Hank related news… he tells me he wants to open a hotel. I'm deeply suspicious it's only so he can go through random people's stuff while they're sleeping and steal from them. I'm having to seriously consider it though because the other option is him opening a hairdressing salon and honestly, Hank running wild with scissors and chemical dyes is not something I can get behind. Waiting to happen… meet your accident. Fernando Del Vecchio has already had a taste of what kind of mayhem Monsieur Hank the hairstylist would unleash. Hank gave him a haircut while he was asleep the other day. Well, I say haircut… does using hair clippers to engrave the words 'Llamas sucks' into Fernando Del Vecchio's back count? Although, Hank isn't that great of a speller so what he actually engraved was 'Lamaze suks' which I think you'll agree, is just generally confusing because what could a llama possibly have against prenatal birthing classes? Fernando Del Vecchio was furious (understandably so) and he replaced Hank's shampoo with that hair remover stuff. So yeah, I'm now the 'proud' owner of a llama sporting graffiti slagging off Lamaze classes and a bald monkey… my cup runneth over. **

**At least in the fictional world I can make my creations (sorry copyrighted owners of Arrow – other people's creations) do what I want. Which is a very graceful segue way into this chapter. And you thought I couldn't get there from a bald monkey… oh ye of little faith! **

**CHAPTER TWENTY**

Diggle folded his arms in front of his imposing chest and sent an unimpressed look down his nose at the younger man.

"Hey!" said Roy defensively, jabbing a finger in his general direction. "Don't look at me like that. What happened was not my fault."

"You killed the only chance we had of getting into Coates' latest lab set up discretely," said Diggle in annoyance. "How should I look at you?"

"I put a knock out arrow in the guy's shoulder and the gas should have just put him to sleep for a couple of hours," protested Roy. "It's not my fault he decided to throw himself on the end of a broom handle." He gave Diggle a pointed look. "If you think about it, it was more like suicide on his behalf."

Diggle's only response to that was an arched eyebrow.

"Okay," conceded Roy, "it wasn't suicide, but it wasn't my fault either. You should have told me that there was going to be someone waiting for me."

"You said you didn't want to know any more of the plan," said Diggle sharply.

"And that's the time you decide to listen to me?" asked Roy in disbelief. "Are you nuts? This is so all your fault."

"Apparently it is when I ask a boy to do a man's job," snapped Diggle.

"Yeah, well, a _man_ wouldn't have fit in that ducting," threw back Roy and then he stopped and scowled. "Damn it, did I just throw shade at myself?" he asked in annoyance.

Diggle shook his head at him. "You are testing my patience, Harper. I brought you along to help me, not sabotage me. Lives are at stake here."

"Are they?" snapped Roy. "I wouldn't know because you're not telling me squat about what is going on. You just shove me into a disease-ridden, rat-infested piece of tubing without so much as a please or thank you."

"You think I should thank you for killing my inside guy?" ground out Diggle.

"Again, I didn't kill him," bit out Roy. "It was just a freak accident."

Diggle's jaw hardened. "Whatever it was, it means we have to go to plan B." He'd really hoped it hadn't been going to come to this. Diggle walked around to the trunk of his car and opened it up.

Roy came up behind him, his eyes widening at seeing the many guns, grenades and other pieces making up a pretty serious looking arsenal. "Is that a flame thrower?" he asked in disbelief.

"Flame thrower combined grenade launcher," agreed Diggle calmly.

Roy stared at all the weaponry. "Dude, if you're ever pulled over by the cops, you're so totally screwed. I mean Rodney King level of screwed."

"That's why I make it a point never to be pulled over," said Diggle simply.

"So," said Roy slowly, "what's the plan here exactly?"

"The back door approach didn't work, so we're going in through the front door."

Roy looked at him in open incredulousness. "Are you being serious right now?"

Diggle gave him a dark look. "Don't I look serious?"

"You look insane if you think two guys are going to get past the lobby of that building before getting their heads blown off," said Roy sharply. "No matter how heavily armed they are."

"We're running out of time and options," said Diggle flatly. "So, unless you have a better idea, I suggest you get stop overthinking this and get yourself armed properly."

Roy suddenly straightened up. "It's not that I don't love your obvious suicide plan where I end up a bloody smear on a marble foyer but why don't we just grab this woman before she gets into Disney Tower?"

Diggle made an annoyed noise. "Coates is already in the building."

Roy pointed past his shoulder to the other end of the alley. "Pretty sure that is her, right? Definitely not being inside the Tower."

Diggle swung round to see that Roy was indeed pointing to one Lyla Coates as she leant against the wall at the end of the alleyway and lit up a cigarette, casually drawing a deep breath of smoke and blowing it out again. She was dressed all in black and wore a long coat with a fur lined hood. Her striking hair stood out as much as always even though most of her face was hidden behind huge, black sunglasses.

Diggle cocked his head at the woman who'd obviously snuck out for a quick cigarette break. "Hmm," he calmly, "well that's wildly convenient but I feel like we're due a change of luck around now."

"So, we just grab her, right?"

Diggle gave him a sharp look. "_I'll_ grab her. You've done enough damage for today. We need Coates alive and talking."

Roy gave him an unamused look. "Well, you'd better hurry up then, at the rate she's puffing her way through those cigarettes, I'm not sure how much longer she has to live."

"Just stay here," Diggle instructed him. "I'll be right back." He turned and headed towards the unsuspecting Professor Coates. Diggle couldn't help but pray that there was going to be an antidote at the end of all of this because if there wasn't, he was really worried about what that would mean for Oliver. He just had to hope Felicity had everything in hand while he did his part in saving Oliver.

#

"And just sign here."

Oliver stood next to Felicity as she signed the dusty check in book. He looked around at the rudimentary log cabin which served as the reception area for the lot of four cabins. Faded pictures hung lopsidedly on exposed wooden walls, tired lounge furniture with faded garish flower prints were up against one wall. On the other wall were a series of mounted animal heads staring down at them with glassy eyes. Plastic, dust laden flowers sat in a squat vase on the counter and the coffee table, providing more of a home for spider webs then any real aesthetics for the room. Rustic didn't even begin to describe the décor in this hunter's retreat. An ornately framed mirror hung on the wall behind the man serving them. It was oddly out of place to the rest of the décor except for that fact it too was covered in dust and had black spots creeping their way across the reflective surface, obviously in need of the backing being re-silvered.

"Now then, honey," said the old man behind the counter, "which cabin would you like? They're all vacant."

Oliver eyed the other man warily. His bushy beard and thickened middle gave him a somewhat Santa-like appearance but Oliver didn't find the man particularly benign. He was smiling too much at Felicity and she was smiling back, which was driving Oliver insane.

The man ran a hand over his sweaty comb-over and adjusted the incredibly thick glasses he was wearing. "Number two has a nice view," he offered up easily.

"We're just really looking for some privacy," said Felicity. "The furthest away cabin would be great."

The man smiled. "Honeymooners, eh?" he said in amusement. "I remember when the wife and I were like that. Cause, you two wouldn't have even been born when we were chasing each other around the garden," he chuckled.

"Leslie, don't harass the young ones," chided a woman's voice from the back area. "Just give them the key to number four and let them be."

"That's the wife," said Leslie, a little unnecessary. He looked at Oliver and winked. "You never get too old for them still to be tellin' you what to do, eh?"

Oliver tightened his hold on Felicity's arm, feeling like his head was about to burst. Sweat was running off him and he was beginning to shake. Now that they were out of the car again, Oliver felt like they were too exposed. He hadn't really completely recovered from the attack by the carjacker or his nightmare. Oliver could feel the adrenalin still pumping through his body, making his heart rate speed up. He felt like every muscle in his body was tensed, ready to spring into action at any moment and the longer he remained like this, the more his body was overheating.

Leslie squinted at Oliver and leaned closer. "You okay, son? You're lookin' a little peaky." His concerned expression dropped away and was replaced with a hard look. _"You can't protect her, you're too weak. I'm going to take her away from you." _

Oliver's eyes went wide. "What did you say?" he asked furiously, heart racing painfully in his chest.

"I asked if you were okay," repeated Leslie, looking confused.

"Oliver," said Felicity in concern, "it's okay. Mr. Ledbetter was just being polite."

Oliver looked at Felicity in disbelief. Didn't she hear what the other man had just said?

"_She doesn't see the danger," said a familiar voice matter-of-factly. "We're the only ones who can see it properly." _

Oliver's head snapped up and he caught his reflection in the mirror only his reflection seemed to be moving independently to him. Reflection Oliver spoke to him again.

"_He'll take her away from us if you're not careful," Reflection Oliver warned him. "We can't trust anyone. They all want Felicity for themselves. We can't let that happen." _

Oliver scowled, fear coiling in the pit of his stomach at even the thought of Felicity being taken away from him.

"_They'll kill her if we don't protect her." _

"No," said Oliver sharply, his hands balling into tight fists, "I won't let that happen!"

Leslie tentatively looked behind himself as Oliver seemed to be yelling at someone standing behind him but there was no one there, just the mirror.

"Travel sickness," blurted out Felicity anxiously, putting an arm around Oliver's waist as he started to sway badly, "my friend gets bad travel sickness and I think he's taken a bad batch of ginger travel calm and isn't feeling that well."

"Well now, that's a pity," said Leslie a little hesitantly, still looking confused.

"He just needs to lie down," said Felicity quickly. "Do you have that key to cabin four?"

"Sure, honey," said Leslie, turning slowly and limping his way to the board with the keys hanging on it. He turned back towards them and held out the key to Felicity.

Oliver tensed, seeing the action as an act of aggression.

"Could you put it on the counter, please?" requested Felicity, obviously feeling Oliver's reaction to the man getting too close. "I-ah-like to pick things up from counters," she finished off weakly. "It's kind of a thing for me."

Leslie looked bemused again but he dutifully laid the key down on the counter and Felicity quickly picked it up. "Thanks," she said brightly. "Which one is cabin four?"

"Go all the way down the path, last cabin on your right."

"Thank you," said Felicity, starting to try and maneuver Oliver towards the door.

"You need anything, you just come down here and the wife and I will make sure to help you out," said Leslie with a friendly smile. His expression became cold as he fixed his gaze on Oliver. _"You won't be able to keep her safe. I'm going to make sure of it."_

Oliver pulled away from Felicity and took a few aggressive steps towards the other man. "You son of a bitch!" he yelled at him. "You stay away from her or I will kill you!"

Leslie's eyes went wide and he held up placating hands. "Whoa there, son, no one is trying looking to hurt anyone else around here."

_Reflective Oliver shook his head at Oliver. "It's a lie, don't listen to him. He's just trying to get you to drop your guard." _

Oliver's eyes narrowed menacingly as he glared at the older man.

Felicity grabbed his arm and started to pull him away. "Boy, I'm going to be writing to that company who puts out that ginger travel sickness tablets," said Felicity hastily. "They should know about this kind of side effect." She tugged on Oliver's arm, making him look at her. "Come on," she said, looking up at him anxiously, "we need to get you into bed so you can sleep this off."

Oliver resisted her moving him, feeling a strong urge to neutralize the threat of the other man.

"Please, Oliver," said Felicity unsteadily, "don't you want it to be just the two of us? Like we talked about?"

Oliver tore his gaze from Leslie and looked down into Felicity's pleading expression. Suddenly it was impossible to do anything other than what she asked of him. Oliver gave an unsteady nod of his head and let Felicity draw him away. She pulled his arm around her neck and Oliver found himself having to lean on her heavily as they navigated their way out of the reception cabin. The sky above them was still flashing angrily and deafening rolls of thunder would follow very quickly afterwards. The violence of the weather going on over their heads felt perfectly matched to the violence of emotions Oliver was feeling. He was finding the simple act of walking hard as he stumbled drunkenly against Felicity who was staggering a little under his weight.

"It's okay, Oliver," she panted, trying to keep them both upright as he leaned heavily on her, "we're almost there."

Oliver felt like his entire body was on fire but he was also freezing. He was having trouble seeing, sweat was filling up his eyes and black spots kept dancing across his vision. They stumbled on towards the cabin which felt like they were running a marathon to Oliver. Felicity fumbled with the key in the lock when they finally made it and then they were both tumbling through the door. Oliver started an unsteady journey towards the bed, not sure how much longer he could keep himself upright.

"No," said Felicity urgently, pulling him away from the bed, "we need to get your temperature down or your body is going to start shutting down. She unsteadily guided him towards the bathroom which sported a single tub in the corner. Felicity sat Oliver on the edge of the tub but he couldn't hold himself upright any longer and slid down into the empty bath, legs hanging over the edge.

"Okay, near enough," said Felicity as she quickly pulled his shoes and socks off and then swung his legs down into the bath. She found the plug and put it in place and then immediately started to run the cold water, not caring that Oliver was still fully clothed.

Oliver slumped back in the tub, feeling the water hitting his overheated body. He was having trouble keeping conscious.

"I'll be right back."

Oliver's hand snapped out and grabbed hers. "No!" he said loudly. "We have to stay together." Oliver was still acutely conscious of the threat the old man was to Felicity.

"I'll only be a minute," Felicity promised him. "We need ice to get your core body temperature down, otherwise…" she didn't finish, just pulled a face. "I'll be fast, I promise. I saw the ice machine just outside our door." Felicity didn't give him a chance to argue, instead she pulled her hand from his and ran out the door.

Oliver tried to follow her but his overheated muscles had him just flailing in the bath instead. Water was filling up the bath and making it even harder for him to find any traction but then Felicity was back and dumping a bucket of ice into the water. Oliver immediately felt the impact of the frozen ice against his body and it felt amazingly good. Felicity was gone again, reappearing half a minute later with more ice. She kept running back and forwards like that, dumping bucket after bucket of ice into the bath with Oliver until there was nearly as much ice as water in the tub.

"Okay," she said breathlessly, turning off the tap after dumping her latest bucket of ice into the bath with Oliver, "I think that is enough." Felicity put the back of her hand to Oliver's forehead. "Please let this work."

Oliver was too tall for the bath, his knees were bent up but he didn't care. The icy water felt like a balm against his scorching flesh and he let his head slump back against the enamel of the bath.

Felicity half-filled the bucket she'd been retrieving the ice in with the ice slurry from the bath and carefully started to pour some over Oliver's head. "I know you're meant to use tepid water to cool people down," she fretted, "but I think you were a little too far gone for that."

Oliver closed his eyes as the icy water soaked his hair and ran down his face, instantly taking the sensation of being on fire from both places.

"How do you feel?"

Oliver kept his eyes closed. "Better," he said unsteadily, letting Felicity pour more of that cooling water over him.

"All of the adrenalin, cortisol and other hormones are putting your body into hyper-drive," said Felicity unhappily. "It's like you're permanently running a marathon."

Oliver opened his eyes and looked up at Felicity as she sat on the edge of the bath. "That's how I feel," he said unevenly.

"I know," said Felicity sympathetically, "but we're here now and it's just the two of us."

Oliver scowled. "What about that other guy?"

"Mr. Ledbetter?" asked Felicity in surprise. "The man is older than dirt. You really don't have to worry about him, Oliver, I promise."

Oliver wanted to believe Felicity but he couldn't. He'd heard what the man had said, even if Felicity hadn't. He was a danger to Felicity and Oliver had to protect her. "Don't go near him again," Oliver ordered her raggedly. "You can't trust him."

"I'm not going to go near him again," said Felicity quickly. "You don't have to worry about that, okay?" She poured some more icy water over his knees. "Just lie back and let the ice do its thing. Once you're temperature is back to normal I'll make us something to eat." A loud clap of thunder shook the cabin and Felicity gave a little start, almost falling into the tub herself. "Why won't this storm break already?" she muttered, looking a little flustered. "Just how much build up does an act of nature need?"

Oliver blinked blearily up at her, trying to focus. "Don't you like storms?"

"I'm not in love with them," she conceded. "At least, not loud ones like this."

Oliver reached out and took her hand, squeezing it with what little strength he had left. "It's only a little weather. We're safe in here." At least Oliver hoped they were. He wasn't worried about the storm gathering outside, he was more worried about the one building up in him. Felicity was all he could think about, she was the only thing that mattered now. No matter what, he had to protect her, keep her by his side. No one could take her away from him. He'd die to stop that from happening.

#

Diggle dumped the woman he had slung over his shoulder none too gently onto a chair and then stepped back. Lyla Coates glared up at him, her hands tied behind her back with a plastic tie, black duct tape over her mouth. It had been easy enough to come up behind the unsuspecting woman and simply grab her from the street. Diggle had quickly carried her back to his car, where he'd gagged and bound her and then it was a simply process of carrying her into the abandoned building they were parked beside. He'd carried her up several flights of stairs until they were in a deserted office, stacked with chairs and desks and pieces of yellowing paper littering the floor.

"I'm going to take the tape off your mouth," said Diggle calmly. "You can scream if you want, but no one is going to hear you."

Lyla looked defiantly back at him as Diggle pulled off the duct tape from her mouth. As soon as she could speak, she fixed Diggle with a hard look. "You're a dead man," she said flatly, her French accent making the threat sound surprisingly lyrical.

Diggle was unbothered. "You're not the first person to say that to me. I doubt you'll be the last."

Her gaze drifted over to Roy who was standing off to one side. "I wonder if your little butt monkey feels the same way?" she purred.

"Whoa," exclaimed Roy, "_butt_ _monkey_? What the hell?" He glared at the older woman. "What about me says butt monkey to you?"

Lyla gave an offhand shrug, hands still tied behind her back. "Ze cheap haircut," she said flatly and then her gaze ran over the rest of him, "and possibly ze shoes."

Roy looked down at his shoes in confusion and then back at Lyla. "Seriously, the woman with the dalmation hair is throwing shade at my hair style?"

"I am memorable," she said proudly. "You are elevator music, nondescript and utterly forgettable."

"Look, lady," Roy snapped, "just keep your comments to yourself and tell us what we want to know." Roy paused and then looked up at Diggle, lowering his voice in an aside to the other man. "Just what is it we want to know again?"

Lyla gave a snort of amusement. "Ze little monkey doesn't even know why he is going to die. "Votre cerveau est dans le même état qu'un sandwich au fromage."

Roy scowled. "What was that about a sandwich?"

"She said your brain is exactly like a cheese sandwich," translated Diggle matter of factly.

"One, I didn't know you spoke French," said Roy, "and two, what the hell?" He made an outraged face. "A cheese sandwich? Who uses a sandwich to insult a person? How is that even a thing?"

"Let's stay on task here," said Diggle. He fixed Lyla with a determined look. "I know all about Project Sirène and the XR-320."

"Congratulations," said Lyla indifferently as she crossed her legs. "You can crack a firewall. What do you wish from me, a round of ze applause?"

"I want the antidote," said Diggle without hesitation. "Where is it?"

Lyla cocked her head at him. "Za man from the warehouse," she said, looking intrigued. "He is still alive?" Lyla pursed her lips. "Interesting. What condition is he in? Is he still lucid? Has he killed yet?"

Roy leaned over to Diggle, keeping his voice low. "What the hell is this nut job talking about?"

Diggle's jaw hardened, keeping his attention on Lyla right then. "Just answer my question."

"Or you'll do what?" she challenged him. "Torture me?"

"I have no problem with doing what needs to be done," said Diggle, his expression hardening. "I need that antidote." The fact that Lyla wasn't denying its existence was a positive for Diggle. "And I'll do what I have to do to get it."

"Assuming zere is an antidote for me to let you have," said Lyla coolly.

She was calling his bluff but Diggle had played enough poker games to know how to call it right back. "You're a smart woman, Professor and something tells me you wouldn't create a weapon without also creating a way to neutralize it. As much money as you can make selling the initial weapon, you can make back twice as much with a way to counteract it. You get to control both sides of the market, something I think you and your former employers would have been highly interested in achieving."

She regarded him steadily. "You're right," said Lyla at last. "There is an antidote, a quite effective one, in fact. The formula is in my laboratory, in my office. I 'ave it stored on a USB stick in the top drawer of my desk."

Roy eyed her warily. "Why are you being so specific? What's the catch here?"

"Zere is no catch," said Lyla casually. "I wish for you both to know there is a cure, that there is a chance your friend could be saved." She gave them a cold smile. "Because when you are unsuccessful in securing the antidote and your friend dies a violent, painful death, you will know true despair that you have failed him so utterly."

"You are one grade A bitch, you know that, lady?" said Roy in vague horror. "Who gets off on something like that?"

She sent him a dismissive look. "I do not expect a child such as yourself to understand."

"That's because I'm not insane, you sociopath," snapped Roy.

"It's is because you are insipid and uninspired," Lyla shot back. "Zere is no greatness in your soul."

"At least I have a soul," bit out Roy. "I didn't trade it for a whole bag of crazy!"

Diggle held up a hand towards Roy to quieten him as he sent a hard look towards Lyla. "You're going to take me into your lab and we're going to retrieve that USB stick."

Lyla looked up at him, a glint in her eyes. "Make me," she said simply, expression full of defiant challenge.

Diggle's eyes narrowed, prepared to do just that.

**A/N****: So, Riggle have their hands full with Professor Bitch Face and Felicity has her hands full with a rapidly deteriorating Oliver. Good times. Oh, a quick shout out to thank Kazy for my French smack down… she translated but the cheese sandwich was all mine… I hear it's quite the popular French put down… but then again, I have a lot of voices in my head, so who knows where I actually heard that from. And yes, Diggle speaks French… nobody can prove he doesn't… until an episode airs on Arrow where they say he doesn't… then I'm screwed and I'll probably have to come back and delete this entire fic. We creative types are overly dramatic that way. **

**So, what do you think, does Diggle get Coates to bend to his iron will? Who will triumph with this battle of wills? Stay tuned for the next exciting instalment (which may be a few days off – just warning you) to find out!**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N****: Hi guys, posting this chapter without the usual preamble due to extreme fatigue. I need a day off… only 6 more days to go… I think I can, I think I can. . **

**So, this chapter… let me just have a quick read and remind myself what it's about… back again, that's right, now I remember. Hmm... don't think I'll give you a run up to this chapter, I'll just let you read. **

**On that note, here's the chapter… hope you enjoy…**

**PS. Hank said you owe him money. I didn't ask what for because I never like the answer to that question. Besides, if/when the police become involved, I'd prefer to be able to claim complete and utter ignorance in all Hank-related misdemeanours/felonies. We can't both go to jail. Fernando Del Vecchio doesn't do well on his own… he gets a little… weird. **

**CHAPTER TWENTY ONE**

Oliver's eyes flickered as he came awake. He lifted his head, grimacing a little at the crick which was now in his neck. He put a hand up to rub his neck, taking stock of his surroundings at the same time. Thunder was still crashing noisily outside and the small window in the bathroom would periodically light up with the flashes of intense lightening. Oliver looked down at himself, realizing he was still in the bathtub. Most of the ice had melted now and his body temperature felt normal once more. At some point he must have dozed off, exhausted from the huge physical toll all of this was taking on his body. Oliver hauled himself out of the water and stepped out of the tub. Water cascaded out of his sopping wet clothes. He pulled his shirt off over his head. "Felicity," he called out, discarding the sodden garment carelessly on the ground. Next where his pants and underwear. "Felicity!" he tried again, this time louder so she could hear him over the noisy storm outside. Oliver reached for a towel.

"_She's not here." _

Oliver's head jerked up to see his reflection in the grubby mirror hanging over the bathroom sink talking to him. He tensed. Oliver knew there wasn't something right about this but his reflections words was all he could really think about. "Where is she? Where's Felicity?" he asked anxiously.

_Reflection Oliver gave him a disgusted look. "They took her, while you were sleeping. They took her from us and you did nothing to stop it. Felicity trusted in you to keep her safe but you let them hurt her, you let them steal her away from us forever." _

"No!" said Oliver in horror, dropping the towel. He raced out of the bathroom into the main room in the cabin, the one with the only the bed in it. On the bed were his and Felicity's backpacks they'd taken with them and on the small wooden table was the food they'd brought with them but no Felicity. Oliver could still smell Felicity's scent in the room. He followed it out the door, knowing she hadn't been gone long. Oliver needed to find her, it was all he could register in that moment as he practically ran out of the door of the cabin.

#

"What's za matter?" Lyla taunted Diggle. "Are you all empty threats? Or don't you 'ave the stomach for this type of thing after all? The only way you will get into my laboratory is over my dead and bleeding body but perhaps you are not man enough to 'ave the courage of your convictions, no?"

Diggle's jaw hardened at Coates' defiance.

"Side bar," said Roy, sending Diggle a pointed look.

Diggle reluctantly followed Roy over to a corner of the room, out of earshot of the smirking Lyla. "What?" he asked impatiently.

"Not for nothing, but can you see how much this fruit loop keeps egging you on to torture her?" asked Roy. "She wants you to hurt her." He screwed his face up. "Which is wrong on so many levels I don't even know where to start."

"I need that antidote," said Diggle grimly.

"For Oliver," guessed Roy. "Right?"

Diggle gave a curt nod of his head.

"What's this gas done to him?"

"It's made him fixate on Felicity."

Roy made a confused face. "That's it? He's got a thing for a pretty girl? That's why we're risking our lives here?"

"It's more than a thing," said Diggle tightly. "It's causing a physiological and psychiatric response in Oliver which is only getting worse and it's putting him and Felicity in a lot of danger."

"So, he's become a bunny boiler about Felicity," said Roy slowly. His brow creased. "Where's Felicity now?"

"With Oliver."

Roy blinked. "Whose bright idea was that? Why would you send Felicity off with Oliver if he's dangerous?"

Diggle made an impatient noise. "Because if Felicity isn't with Oliver then basically his heart will explode. The XR-320 gas has created a psychological need in Oliver to be with Felicity and it also created a physiological one. Oliver literally can't survive right now if Felicity isn't with him."

"How did this happen?" asked Roy in consternation.

"That doesn't matter right now," said Diggle shortly. "What matters is getting into the lab and retrieving that antidote formula."

"Assuming Professor Cray Cray is telling the truth," noted Roy. "What if it's all a ruse?"

"Then that will be disappointing but until I know that for sure, I'm assuming the anti-toxin exists."

"Okay, then, how are you going to get salt 'n pepper talking?"

Diggle's jaw hardened. "I'm going to go down to the car and get a few things. A lot of people think they can resist torture. A lot of people are wrong."

"I'm not so much worried about her resisting it as enjoying it," said Roy dourly. "I've had enough of a scarred childhood. I don't really need to be adding to that crap."

"You don't have to stay," said Diggle calmly.

Roy's brow wrinkled. "So, we're really doing this then? Torturing a helpless woman? I mean, yeah, she's a bitch, but so was my senior Biology teacher and I wouldn't be too comfortable taking the thumb screws to Mrs. Finkelstein, even though she did fail me on that last paper which I totally know I passed."

"Like I said, you don't have to stay," said Diggle determinedly, "but I need her to get me inside so I can get to that antidote and that is going to happen, one way or the other."

Roy frowned, obviously still not certain.

"What iz za matter?" called out Lyla to them mockingly. "Iz za little monkey scared? Does he wish you to help him find his tiny testicles or perhaps zere are none to find, eh?"

Roy's expression hardened at the woman's continuing taunting of him. "God speed and don't forget the blow torch," he instructed Diggle flatly.

"Stay with her," said Diggle. "I'll be right back." This wasn't something Diggle was looking forward to doing but he was pretty confident he could find ways of inflicting pain on the insane woman that even she wouldn't enjoy. It was a disturbing skill set to have but Diggle had reconciled himself with the darkness in this world long ago. Sometimes you just had to do what you had to do.

#

"Now, I know I've got what you're looking for in here."

Felicity forced a polite smile to her lips even as she glanced anxiously over her shoulder. She was back in the reception cabin after discovering the lights in the cabin didn't work. There was no overhead lighting, only two bedside lamps and a lamp stand, none of which worked when she tried to turn them on. It was only five o'clock in the afternoon but that storm was closing in fast and everything was prematurely dark already. Felicity didn't really want to be in the dark during a storm while trying to take care of an increasingly erratic Oliver. At the reception counter she'd found Linda, Lesley's wife and she'd been hunting up some spare light globes for the lamps for her. Only it was taking forever as the older woman rifled through all of her drawers looking for the bulbs and Felicity was very conscious of being away from Oliver for too long. She'd left him asleep in the bathtub, knowing he wasn't going to drown because he was propped up and the bath was too small for him to slip down in but Felicity still really wanted to get back to him. She just didn't know how Oliver was going to react these days and now he seemed to be having conversations with people who weren't there and it'd be a lie if she said that didn't worry her more than a little bit.

"Found them," announced Linda.

"Oh, good," said Felicity in relief.

Linda straightened up with a handful of different bulbs in their boxes. "What wattage do you want, hon?" she asked. "I've got 60 and 100's."

"It doesn't really matter," said Felicity hastily, holding out her hand. "I'll just take whatever you've got."

"Felicity!"

She tensed at hearing Oliver call her name and sounding so desperate. Damn it, she really thought he wouldn't wake up before she got back. "I'm coming, Oliver!" she called back just as Oliver burst into the cabin.

"Felicity!"

Felicity turned around. "It's okay—oh!" Her eyes widened as a completely naked Oliver stood in the door way. Felicity immediately averted her gaze. "Oliver!" she squeaked in horror. Still trying not to look, Felicity hurried over and grabbed the first thing she could find to cover him up, very conscious of the fact that she wasn't the only one getting an eyeful. Felicity grabbed one of the faded cushions off the couch and held it up in front Oliver's crotch. "What are you doing?" she hissed at him in distress. "Where are your pants?"

Oliver didn't even seem to be registering the fact he was sans clothing. "Felicity," he said urgently, grabbing her arms, "are you alright?"

"Not really," she said, sending an embarrassed smile over towards Linda who was not even making an attempt to look away. "I'm so sorry about this. He's a little disorientated from the motion sickness pills." It wasn't a great cover story but it was the one Felicity was going to stick with.

"Don't mind me, hon," said Linda, openly admiring what she could still see of Oliver.

"Are you sure you're alright?" asked Oliver, all of his attention still on her, hands running over her to make certain.

"I'm very sure," said Felicity, blushing. "Just like I'm very sure we should go now."

Linda held up the boxes of light bulbs. "Better take the 100's, honey. You don't want to miss out on any bit of that prime real estate."

Felicity made a harassed face, her blush deepening. "Um, okay, thank you." Still trying to hold up the cushion to protect Oliver's dignity, Felicity took the bulbs, even though he didn't seem to care one way or the other, his attention on her and nothing else. She tucked them under her arm and took Oliver's arm, turning him towards the door. "Come on, let's get you out of here."

"Don't rush on my account," said Linda cheekily, now openly ogling Oliver's exposed backside as Felicity tried to maneuver him out of the door.

Felicity grimaced and grabbed another cushion, holding it up against Oliver's backside, trying to cover both his front and back at the same time. "I-ah-I'll return the cushions later," she said breathlessly.

Linda laugh. "Don't worry about it, hon. I'd say you've got more important things to be getting on with. I know I wouldn't be leavin' that alone for _any_ reason."

Felicity gave her a weak smile, shepherding Oliver out of the cabin. Once they were out of earshot she gave a groan. "Oliver, what are you doing? You can't walk around naked. You're going to get yourself arrested." She glanced back over her shoulder to where Linda was now at the window, watching them leave, an appreciative look on her face. "Or molested," she said, only half joking.

"I woke up and you were gone," said Oliver tightly. "I thought you'd been taken, that they'd hurt you."

"No one has hurt me," said Felicity firmly as she tried to hurry them back to the cabin, "but Oliver, you have to promise me, no matter what happens, you have to remember this one thing."

"What?" asked Oliver, watching her intently as she guided them back into the cabin, still trying to cover him up with two sofa cushions.

"Pants," said Felicity determinedly. "Whatever you're doing, you need to have pants on."

Oliver scowled, clearly not understanding why she was being so persistent on the matter. "I don't care about pants," he growled. "I only care about you."

"Well, I do care about pants," said Felicity, hastily closing the door behind them. "Because without pants you'll get yourself arrested and if you're arrested they'll split us up."

Oliver grabbed her arms tightly. "I won't let that happen," he said fiercely.

"That's right, you won't, because from now on, you'll always be wearing pants, okay?" Her expression became pained. "Please, Oliver, put some clothes on. For both of our sakes."

Oliver made an annoyed sound at her persistence. "Fine," he said impatiently, "but I don't know why it's such a big deal." Oliver stalked over to the bed where his backpack was. "The only thing that matters is that you were in danger."

"It is a big deal," said Felicity firmly, forgetting herself for a moment and looking over towards him and catching quite the eyeful as Oliver pulled on a pair of sweatpants. She immediately swung back around again, blushing violently. "A _really_ big deal as it turns out," said Felicity unevenly, pushing her glasses up her nose and biting her bottom lip. She hadn't seen that many naked men in her lifetime, so she didn't have a huge amount to go on but Oliver was most definitely the most impressive naked man she'd seen so far. Of course he would be. He'd been blessed with every other desirable physical attribute, why would his man bits be any different?

"Felicity—" Oliver touched her arm, suddenly very close and Felicity had been lost in her own thoughts and wasn't expecting it. She gave a strangled scream and started violently. Oliver tightened his hold on her arm. "It's okay," he said quickly, "it's only me."

Felicity sent him a nervous look, blowing out a relieved breath to see Oliver was now fully clothed in navy sweatpants and a white t-shirt. "Sorry, I'm a little on edge."

"Because of me," said Oliver unhappily. "I'm making you nervous."

It was more her wayward libido that had Felicity worried. Every time she caught Oliver looking at her like she was the only woman in the world for him Felicity had to keep trying to remind herself that none of this was real. Which was easier said than done when you had the one man you'd spent the last two years daydreaming about suddenly seeing you in a whole new light. Even before all this had happened, when Oliver would give a person his full attention, it was like the rest of the world faded away and it was only the two of you who existed. He had that intensity to him that drew people in, made them feel special for being noticed by Oliver Queen. It was like that now but nonstop and Felicity was finding it increasingly hard to keep her feet on the ground when those sharp blue eyes were refusing to look away from her own.

"We should probably eat something," said Felicity unsteadily.

He was looking at her unblinkingly. "I'm not hungry."

"Yes, you are," she said resolutely. "Besides, I am hungry and I'm not eating alone."

Oliver reached up a hand and tucked a wayward strand of blonde hair behind her ear. "Don't leave me again," he said, voice low. "I can't protect you if you're not with me."

"I know it feels like I'm in danger but I'm really not." She put her hands on his chest. "Please try and relax about that. We're safe, just the two of us, nothing is going to happen."

Oliver's hand came up to her back, moving restlessly against her. "You have to trust me about this, Felicity," he said urgently. "I can't let anything happen to you. I'll kill anyone who tries to take you away from me."

Felicity cupped his face. "You're not going to kill anyone, okay?" she said intently. "Not for me, not ever. I don't want you to think like that." It scared her when Oliver talked like this, particularly when he no longer seemed able to distinguish real threats from imaginary ones.

Oliver wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. "I need you," said Oliver hoarsely.

"And I need you to listen to me," she said softly. "Please, Oliver, nothing is going to happen to me and I'm not going to leave you. I wouldn't even know how to. I can't imagine my life without you in it." Felicity bit her bottom lip, knowing she'd said more than she'd intended to but it was all true. Oliver was addicted to her now but she'd been addicted to him for much longer.

Oliver leant his forehead against hers, closing his eyes. "Felicity," he said unsteadily, "I love you."

His words caught Felicity off-guard and they were like a knife through her heart. It was everything she hadn't even let herself dream Oliver would say to her but it wasn't real. Even so, Felicity couldn't stop herself. "I love you too," she whispered back, tears pricking her eyes. If only this moment was real, if only Oliver really did love her, it would be so perfect.

Oliver lifted his head, eyes flaring at her confession. "Felicity," he said in awe, "do you mean it?"

It would have been so much better for both of them if she didn't but in that moment Felicity couldn't lie. "Yes," she said quietly, "I love you, Oliver."

A slow smile spread across Oliver's face and it took Felicity's breath away. He moved to kiss her but Felicity knew if she let that happen she was in too much of a weak and emotional state to be able to stop when she knew she had to. Felicity turned her head at the last moment so Oliver's lips found her cheek, rather than her mouth. He didn't seem to mind as he brushed his lips back and forth against her cheek, trailing down to her neck.

"Okay," said Felicity weakly, trying desperately not to get caught up in another intense moment between them. She pushed on his chest with lackluster intent. "We should eat now. What do you want?"

"You," said Oliver without hesitation, lips brushing up against the tender skin just below her ear. "I want you."

Felicity screwed up her face and tried to stay strong. "I meant to eat," she clarified shakily.

Oliver caught her gaze, a wicked gleam in his eyes. "It's still you," he said throatily, starting to kiss his way down her neck, chest and stomach.

"Oh," squeaked Felicity, her heart racing so fast it was actually painful as Oliver crouched down in front of her, pushing her skirt up. "Oh… oh," she breathed faintly. Felicity put a hand on his head, intending to stop him from going any lower but then Oliver was nuzzling her lower stomach, hands creeping up under her skirt, pushing the material further up her thighs. _This couldn't be happening, she couldn't let this happen._ Even so Felicity found her hand tightening in Oliver's short hair rather than pushing him away as he moved even lower still. It was only when she felt him hook his fingers into the top of her panties that the reality of the situation really hit home to Felicity. She pushed against his shoulders, taking an abrupt step back. "No!" said Felicity sharply, more for her own benefit than Oliver's.

Oliver looked up at her with a dazed and confused expression, still crouched down in front of her. "What is it?" he asked raggedly. "What's wrong?"

Felicity hastily pushed her skirt down, trying to regain control of her senses. "You-you said that you love me."

Oliver quickly stood up and took a step towards her. "I do love you," he said earnestly. "And you love me." Oliver took her hold of her arms, looking down at her intently. "So now there is no reason why we can't be together, properly together. Don't you want that too?"

Felicity swallowed hard, knowing that it wasn't as simple as that but she also knew that trying to use that particular line of reason with Oliver right now would only upset him and it was dangerous to his health to become upset. She had to be careful about this, had to make sure Oliver had no reason not to trust and listen to her. Felicity knew she had to do this to protect them both. "Oliver," she said softly, "of course I want you." Oliver looked relieved and moved to kiss her again but Felicity stalled him once more, her hands going to his chest. "But-but I want our first time to be special, don't you?" Even as she said those words Felicity couldn't help but blush a little. It was so crazy she was having this conversation with Oliver but playing along with his delusions was the only chance Felicity had of controlling this situation.

"Of course," he said earnestly. "And it will be, I promise."

"It's just that this place," said Felicity hesitantly, "it's not exactly the Hilton, you know?" She wrinkled her nose. "It's not even a Travelodge."

Oliver looked around at the room distractedly. "I guess not," he said uncertainly.

Felicity took a deep breath and touched his cheek. "I don't want our first time to be in a place like this. I know that sounds girly of me but I can't help it. Are-are you okay with that?"

Oliver looked torn but then he smiled. "I want what you want, Felicity. Whatever makes you happy, that's all I care about."

She'd just turned down sex with Oliver Queen. Felicity doubted she'd ever be happy again. She didn't let on though, fixing a bright smile to her lips. "I want to eat some dinner and I want you to join me. Can we do that?"

"Yes, of course, but first you have to do something for me."

Felicity gave him a cautious look. "What?"

"Kiss me," said Oliver, gaze intent on her face. "And tell me you love me again."

"I love you, Oliver," she said quietly, hoping he didn't hear the quiet sadness tinging her declaration. Playing it safe, Felicity went to comply with the rest of Oliver's request by kissing him on the cheek but Oliver used the same trick on her as she had on him, only in reverse. He turned his head at the last moment and captured her lips with his own. Oliver's tongue gently ran along her inner lip, making Felicity's resolve waver momentarily. Dear God but this man knew how to kiss. It was like nothing else could possibly be more important than continuing this sweet discovery of each other. Felicity could feel herself falling, unable to stop what was happening between them. She really was a bad person, there was no getting around it. In the end it was the insistent ringing of her cell phone which saved them both.

Oliver reluctantly ended the kiss. "You're vibrating," he said unevenly.

Felicity was just staring at him wide-eyed. "I know," she said faintly and then realized he was talking about the phone in her skirt pocket. Felicity was very glad Oliver didn't know where she was really experiencing vibrations right then. She fumbled for the phone, grateful for the distraction. "Hello?"

"Felicity, it's me," said Diggle. "How are things?"

Oliver had stayed close, his hand rubbing her back, nuzzling at her neck. "Oh, you know," she said weakly, "going as well as can be expected. Tell me you have the antidote."

"I'm working on it," said Diggle grimly. "Just hang in there."

Oliver's other hand was on her stomach now, fingers fan out and making parts of Felicity's body tingle that she didn't even realize could do that before now. "I'm hanging," she said unevenly, "but not by much."

"How's Oliver?"

Felicity looked up at Oliver as he smiled down at her, his handsome face soft and full of adoration. She'd never taken crack before but Felicity was pretty sure having Oliver look at her like this produced a similar kind of high. "Perfect," she rasped without thinking, hand tightening on the phone.

"Felicity?"

"I mean he's perfectly okay," Felicity corrected herself hastily. "You know, within the scope of what can pass as okay for him right now."

Oliver grabbed Felicity's hand and put her phone to his ear. "Felicity and I are in love," he said happily.

Felicity grabbed her hand back and grimaced, talking to Diggle again. "Yeah, so that's just happened."

"Felicity," said Diggle in concern, "are you alright? Do you have the situation in hand? Do we need to get you out of there?"

"We're fine, Digg," said Felicity, injecting as much certainty as she could into that statement. She gave a reassuring smile at Oliver. "Oliver and I are very happy and calm right now. It's all good."

"It's fantastic," Oliver corrected her with a big grin.

"Yeppers, fantastic," agreed Felicity unevenly. Oliver was all over the place. One moment he was paranoid and suspicious, the next over-protective and violent and right now he was acting like a man who was in love and deliriously happy. This persona was the one Felicity wanted to try and encourage because it was the one which was least likely to hurt himself or someone else. Even if she was going to need years of therapy to get over this once this was all over. "But you know, we'd sure love to see you as soon as we can," said Felicity, nodding at Oliver encouragingly, "you know, so you can see how happy we are."

"I'm working on it, Felicity," Diggle said determinedly. "I just need a little more time. You can do this but promise me if Oliver gets too out of control you'll get yourself out there. Oliver wouldn't want you to put yourself in danger for him, not the real Oliver."

"It'll be fine," said Felicity with more confidence than she felt, "but don't you be a stranger, okay? We'll see you soon."

"You will," he promised her. "I'll call as soon as I've got the antidote."

"I'll be waiting." Felicity hung up the phone and tried once again to get things back on track. "Okay, let's eat. I'm starving… ah,… for food… I'm starving for food." She wasn't getting caught in that particular honey trap again.

Oliver stole a quick kiss. "I'll make us sandwiches." He seemed to be riding some kind of endorphin high, full of energy again.

"What do you want on your sandwich?"

"Twinkies." Felicity saw the way Oliver looked at her. "Just kidding." She wasn't kidding. If ever there was a situation that called for ODing on sugar, this was it but Oliver was looking at her oddly so Felicity tried to appear like a grown up right then. "Whatever you're having is fine." Oliver nodded and set about making them something to eat. Felicity ran a shaking hand through her hair, trying to regain her composure. Things had gotten a little out of hand… a lot out of hand… and she couldn't let that happen again. All she had to do was keep Oliver in this happy mood while not letting them cross any more lines which they couldn't come back from. That was totally doable, right? Felicity could only pray the answer to that particular question was yes.

**A/N****: So, remember a couple of weeks ago when I said I was writing a gratuitous nude scene involving Ollie? Well, that was it. Poor Felicity, it's like she's on the 7****th**** level of Hell… but it's got one heck of a view. ;) **

**I hope this story isn't going too slowly for people. A story is about the journey just as much, if not more, then the actual destination. At least, that is how I feel about stories. For me, it's the build up to the final pay off and giving little pay offs as you go along. Hopefully the scenarios I've got going are engaging enough to keep you entertained before we get where we're ultimately going. **

**Thank you as always for reading and hanging in there with me with this story. I appreciate the company. I'm a bit like Fernando Del Vecchio, I get a little weird when I'm left alone for too long… **


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: And another update! I had a big nanna nap after work today so I feel vaguely re-energized and I got another chapter done, so I'm feeling happy about that.

Of course, I'm still dealing with the fallout from the latest Hank and Fernando Del Vecchio debacle. Every now and then, when the stars align and they call a truce and team up. I call those days my worst nightmare. This time they took my car without permission and turned up 36 hours later, decidedly worse for wear… which was a better state then my car. I don't know exactly what they got up to but I do know that is the most live chickens I've ever seen wedged into a Nissan Tiida. And in case you're wondering, the average Nissan Tiida sedan can accommodate 28 chickens and one disorientated swan. I actually think the swan thought he was getting into a regular taxi and then things went south from there. He's seems pretty traumatized, there may be some intensive therapy in his immediate future. I mean, even witnessing some kind of simian/avian/ungulated mammal three way has got to leave some pretty deep psychological scars and that's before you get to the actual physical ones. The swan lost a toe. I don't know the minimum amount of toes you need to paddle in a straight line but I think Barry (that's the swan's name) is about to find out.

So yeah, that's what I'm dealing with right now. I think the best (and kindest) thing for the car is simply to douse it in petrol and set it alight. It worked for the Vikings… although it won't be a burial at sea… I live in a coastal town, so that will have to be close enough.

But all that has nothing to do with this chapter. So, I'll just leave you alone to read in peace while I try and rehouse 28 chickens… any takers?

**CHAPTER TWENTY TWO**

Roy leant against the wall, his arms folded in front of his chest and studiously trying to ignore the other person in the room who was looking at him with open disdain.

"So, little butt monkey, why are you 'ere?" she asked him casually. "Your boss obviously does not think highly of you, no?"

"He's not my boss," said Roy darkly, "and enough with the butt monkey crap already. We get it, you're mean and crazy. Very scary." He gave a fake shudder of fear. "I'm so frightened."

Lyla gave a little snort. "You do not even know why you're 'ere," she said dismissively. "I 'ave many people working for me who will kill you without breaking a sweat."

"And yet I'm not the one tied to a chair," said Roy sweetly. "Funny how that works out, huh?"

Lyla was looking him over intently. "You are young and strong."

"It's a little too late to try and butter me up now," said Roy dryly.

"You would make excellent material for my research," she continued on blithely. "I think I will spare your life so you can 'ave the honour of helping me make history."

"Can't you just put me on your Christmas card list?" asked Roy sarcastically.

Lyla cocked her head. "Do you even understand what it is I am trying to achieve?"

"I didn't get the yearly shareholders breakdown reports but from what I've worked out so far – generalized death and destruction?" said Roy acerbically. "You're messing with people's minds and nothing good ever comes of that."

Lyla gave a little snort. "People and their useless emotions, they are immobilized by them, distracted. It leaves them unable to focus. I can take all that splintered attention and focus it, make it into a weapon."

"So, what, you're trying to make them into mindless robots?" asked Roy in disbelief.

"I am clearing their minds," said Lyla unapologetically. "I am giving them the gift of clarity."

"And this gift, are you giving them a choice in the matter?"

Lyla gave a careless shrug. "You do not ask sheep what it is they want because they are too stupid to know."

"People aren't sheep," said Roy indignantly.

Lyla's lips curled up into a cruel smile. "You are so young, so naïve. Of course they are sheep. Sheep who need constant shepherding."

"Somehow I don't think a wolf should be the one doing the shepherding," said Roy flatly.

"You really do lack vision, don't you, little monkey," said Lyla dismissively. "No wonder the other one treats you like his servant."

Roy's jaw hardened, knowing the woman was only trying to get under his skin and didn't want to give her the satisfaction. "Okay, I think we're done here." He stalked over and grabbed the tape which Diggle had removed from her mouth. "My mom used to tell me that if you've got nothing nice to say, then don't say nothing."

"Was English her second language?" asked Lyla mockingly. "That is not a grammatically correct sentence structure."

"The two-toned bitch face from hell doesn't get to throw shade at my mother," snapped Roy in annoyance. He leant over her, sticking the tape back over her mouth but Lyla's taunting lowered Roy's guard and he was not expecting her to bring her knee up, catching him violently in the crotch. Roy crumbled to the ground with a grunt of agony at the vicious assault, curling up into a ball as tears of pain stung his eyes.

Lyla leapt up, snapping the back of what was obviously an already broken chair and she started to run, her hands still tied behind her back. Roy rolled over onto all fours, still in excruciating pain but he couldn't let her get away. He staggered to his feet and chased after her. Lyla was out of the door and out onto the walkway but Roy wasn't far behind. After this little stunt Roy was going to happily hand Diggle whatever tools he needed to make this crazy bitch know real pain. Lyla was at the top of the stairs, ready to race down them but then her foot slipped on some of the loose paper floating around on the floor and she fell backwards, against the stair railing. Unfortunately, the railing was clearly not in the best state of repair as it immediately gave way behind her. Roy made a desperate grab for Lyla as she tumbled backwards, managing to grab her hair which would have been enough to save her if the hair then hadn't promptly come off in his hand. Roy was left standing at the top of the stairs, Lyla's wig dangling from his hand as Lyla herself sailed down four stories of the building and narrowly avoided taking out Diggle as he walked back into the building. Diggle took a quick step backwards as Lyla hit the floor in front of him with a quiet but definitive thud.

Roy cautiously peered over the broken railing, looking down at the unmoving body of one Lyla Coates four stories below. "Um… she's okay, right?" he called out hesitantly. Diggle didn't answer him, just looked up at him with a very dark look which pretty much said it all. Roy grimaced. "Bummer." This was not turning into a great day.

#

Oliver cleaned away the remnants of their meal as Felicity was digging through her backpack. He kept sneaking glances at her, unable to believe that they'd just exchanged 'I love you's'. It had felt completely natural and right and Oliver couldn't believe how happy it had made him to know that Felicity felt the same way about him that he did about her. It had been a perfect moment which would have been made more perfect if those amazing kisses they'd shared had continued onto their inevitable conclusion. It had been hard when Felicity had called a halt to things, in more ways than one, but Oliver could see she was nervous so he hadn't pushed. They had the rest of their lives to take things to the next level, even though Oliver seriously hoped it wouldn't take that long but the reality was that he wanted the whole package when it came to Felicity and sex was just a small part of that. Okay, maybe not small but it wasn't his ultimate goal when it came to Felicity. He wanted her heart, soul and body, just like she had his.

"I'm going to take a quick bath," said Felicity, her clothes under her arm.

Oliver's hand tightened on the plate he was holding. "In the bathroom?" he asked, suddenly tense.

"I've heard rumours that the best place to take a bath, yes," said Felicity wryly.

"Are you going to close the door?"

"Yes."

Oliver felt his anxiety levels skyrocket at not being able to see Felicity at all times. "Can you not?"

"No."

Oliver tried another tack. "How about you close the door but I come into the bathroom with you?"

Felicity pursed her lips. "That kind of defeats the purpose then. I may as well leave the door open."

"Good," said Oliver in relief. "That's settled then."

"No, not settled," said Felicity firmly. "I'm having a bath alone, with the door closed."

"Felicity, we're in love. People in love see each other naked," said Oliver, desperate to not have any kind of separation between them, even for a few minutes. "You've seen me naked."

Felicity blushed. "Not through choice," she blurted out.

Oliver frowned. "You don't want to see me naked again?"

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I have no way of answering that and still sound like a lady."

Oliver put down the plate he was holding and quickly moved over to her. "Then let's take a bath together," he said, liking the sound of that very much.

"You don't even fit into that tub, where am I going to fit, let alone the water?" asked a flustered looking Felicity.

"You smell amazing, you don't need a bath," said Oliver unevenly, scared he was losing this battle.

"I can't sleep unless I've had a bath," argued Felicity. "It's a thing with me. I can't go to bed feeling dirty."

Oliver wasn't giving up, he couldn't. "Alright, you have a bath and I'll just sit beside the tub."

Felicity's eyes went wide. "Over my dead body! You are not seeing me naked, Oliver Queen!"

Oliver was taken aback. "What, _ever_?"

"I-ah-well…" Felicity was floundering. "What I mean is that I need a run up to a man seeing me naked. It just can't happen. I have to mentally prepare myself for them seeing the state of my butt."

Oliver looked at her like she was insane. "Your butt is perfect. It's beyond perfect, it should be in the Smithsonian with all the other priceless things in this world."

"You don't have to be polite, Oliver," said Felicity unhappily. "My butt is huge, always has been."

"I can't believe you're saying something so crazy," he said in disbelief. "I love your butt. Sometimes I'd try and annoy you just so you'd get mad at me and I'd get to watch you and your delicious ass storm off. It's truly a thing of beauty."

Felicity looked horrified. "Are you being serious right now?"

Oliver hesitated. "Was that an overshare on my behalf?"

"You picked fights with me just so you could ogle my butt?" asked a stunned looking Felicity.

"I wasn't ogling, I was appreciating, like you would with a fine piece of art or a great bottle of wine," protested Oliver. He was already in this deep, he may as well go for it. "You have an awesome butt, Felicity. I mean, truly magnificently breathtaking."

"You make me sound like Mount Rushmore," said Felicity in horror.

"If there was a way I could get away with commissioning your butt on the side of a mountain I would absolutely go there," said Oliver without hesitation. He then thought about it. "But then I guess I'd have the problem of other people getting to admire your backside and I pretty much want that job all to myself." Oliver shook his head. "Yeah, I'm going to nix that idea. I'm not comfortable with anyone ogling your butt other than me."

Felicity folded her arms in front of her chest. "I thought you said you weren't ogling, you were appreciating."

"I was mainly appreciating but I'm not going to lie, there were some definite moments of ogling." Oliver gave a lop-sided smile. "A perfect ass will do that to a guy."

Felicity blushed again and looked away. "I can't believe we're having this conversation."

"I can't believe you haven't noticed me appreciating your assets before now," said Oliver, without thinking.

"Probably because I was too busy noticing yours," muttered Felicity under her breath.

Oliver still heard her and his face lit up. "You were?"

Felicity rolled her eyes. "I wear glasses, I'm not blind."

"You know all that work out stuff I do in the lair?"

"Yes."

"I don't have to be shirtless," he said candidly, a big grin on his face. "That's pretty much for your benefit. I like it when you watch me."

Felicity bit her bottom lip. "I'm finding this full frontal honesty thing a little unnerving. Can we stop now?"

"I'm finding it kinda liberating."

"Yes, but I say this with a lot of love-"

"Oh God, not again," said a nervous Oliver. These sentences never worked out well for him.

"But you're a little crazy right now, what with the XR-320 in your system. When we get you that antidote, you might feel differently about being so forthright."

"I don't want us to have any more secrets, Felicity," said Oliver earnestly.

"Well, I need for my naked ass to stay one for a little bit longer," she said determinedly. "So, let's work on a compromise here."

"You mean like I come into the bathroom but keep one eye closed?" asked Oliver hopefully.

"Lack of depth perception is not a compromise," said Felicity firmly. "Just what is it exactly that has you so worried about not being able to see me?"

"Someone could hurt you," said Oliver seriously. "They could take you away from me if I'm not there, right beside you to protect you."

"Okay," said Felicity, looking to be thinking hard, "how about this then. I go into the bathroom and close the door-"

"But-"

"Let me finish. I go into the bathroom, close the door and you're just outside the door, a couple of feet away, so you can still get to me if there is any danger."

"But I won't know you're in danger because I can't see you," said a stressed Oliver.

"I'll whistle."

"What?"

Felicity gave a little shrug. "I'll whistle the whole time I'm in the bath and that way you know I'm fine. If I stop whistling, then you know there is a problem."

Oliver frowned. "I don't know," he said slowly.

"I do know and it's a perfect plan. You get to know I'm safe and I get to keep my dignity. It's a win/win."

"How is me getting to see you naked going to make you lose your dignity?" asked a mystified Oliver.

"You're a man and you have the body of a god," said Felicity determinedly. "Trust me, for us mere mortal women, nudity is a lot more confronting of an issue."

"I can't believe you don't know you're gorgeous," said Oliver unhappily.

"Would you please just humour me on this one, like I humour you when you start talking sports and I pretend I understand why the Super Bowl is such a big deal to you." Felicity put a hand on his arm. "I don't understand and men in Lycra running around chasing a ball is stupid and pointless but I still smile and pretend that I get it when you talk about it. You just have to do the same for me about this."

"Football isn't stupid and the Super Bowl is a big deal," grumbled Oliver. "Clearly I'm just going to have to try harder to educate you about both." His look became pointed. "And about how beautiful you are."

"Let's just take baby steps with this one and start with the whistling, okay?" Felicity relented a little when she saw Oliver's renewed anxiety at the thought of not being able to see her. "I'll be lightning quick, I promise. I'll be in and out before you know it."

Oliver gave a grim smile, knowing it was still going to be too long for him but short of physically forcing his way into the bathroom, it was obvious Felicity wasn't going to budge on this matter. "Okay," he agreed reluctantly, watching unhappily as Felicity hurried off to the bathroom. As she closed the door behind her, Oliver felt his stress levels sky rocket and he expelled a shaky breath. "Whistling," he called out to her. "I don't hear any whistling."

"Do you have any requests?" called back Felicity. "I've got a full repertoire."

"Loud," said Oliver without hesitation. "Just make it loud."

"How about some Lady Gaga?" Felicity then launched into a jaunty whistle version of 'Poker Face'.

Oliver leaned back against the door to the bathroom and concentrated on not completely losing his mind at not being able to see Felicity. He closed his eyes and willed her to hurry up.

#

Roy and Diggle stood over Lyla Coates' body, looking down at her. Roy felt Diggle's annoyed gaze shift to him.

"You do realize that if you kill one more person today, it's technically a spree," Diggle bit out, his anger obvious.

"I didn't kill her," said Roy indignantly. "She slipped and fell."

"Just like the guard?"

"Yes, just like the guard," said Roy defensively. "Neither of which was my fault."

Diggle was glaring at him. "How did she get out of the chair?"

"I'm so glad you asked me that," huffed Roy, "because some idiot tied her to a broken chair."

Diggle's eyes narrowed. "The chair wasn't broken."

"Of course not, that's why it broke as soon as she tugged on it," said Roy mockingly.

"A broken chair wouldn't have been a problem if there had been someone there guarding her," said Diggle sarcastically. "Oh wait, there was someone there." He gave Roy a pointed look. "How did you let her get away?"

"She kneed me in the balls," said Roy unhappily. "Really hard… like may not be able to ever have children kind of hard. In fact I think one of my balls is still lodged somewhere in my stomach."

"I can't help but think that is a good thing for humanity right now, you unable to procreate," said Diggle dourly. "Just what were you doing that close to her anyways?"

"I was shutting her up," said Roy defensively.

Diggle folded his arms in front of his chest. "Well, good job on that one because you have, permanently."

"It's not my fault," said Roy, yet again. "I could have saved her if she had real hair." He held up the wig he was still holding onto. Lyla's actual hair was just a few wisps of greying hair as she obviously suffered from some kind of female baldness issue. "I can't believe she had a choice about her hair and this is what she went with. She really was crazy." Roy dropped his hand down and looked at Diggle expectantly. "So, what do we do now?"

Diggle pursed his lips and looked thoughtful. "I've got an idea."

Roy didn't like the expression on the other man's face. "Why did my other testicle just retreat into my body when you said that?"

Diggle just smiled, which only made Roy more nervous. This day really was turning into a complete bastard.

#

Oliver was sitting with his back against the bathroom door having just listened to a non-stop whistling medley of Lady Gaga, Maroon 5 and Katy Perry songs. "You're a good whistler," he noted absently during a song change over.

"I know," said Felicity proudly. "I've actually put it on my CV."

Oliver smiled despite the fact he was beginning to shake from this protracted separation from Felicity. It had only been five minutes but it felt more like five life times to him. "Are you almost done?"

"Yes. I-oh!" A huge flash of lightning followed almost immediately by a deafening crack of thunder shock the entire cabin.

Oliver heard Felicity give a little squawk and then there was the clattering sound of something or someone falling. He leapt to his feet, hands going to the wooden door. "Felicity!" he called out anxiously.

"I'm okay," she said quickly. "Don't come in. I just got a fright from the thunder and lightning."

"Did you fall down?" he asked in concern. "Are you alright?"

"I didn't fall, I just tripped… and then fell… a bit."

Oliver's hand went to the door knob. "I'm coming in," he said determinedly, worried she wasn't telling him the whole truth.

"_She's hurt. You're meant to be looking out for her but you let Felicity get hurt." _

Oliver's head snapped around to see himself standing in the middle of the room, glaring at him.

"_She loves us because she thinks you can protect her. If you can't protect her, then she'll stop loving us," said the other Oliver sternly. "This is all your fault." _

"No!" said Oliver in horror. "That isn't going to happen. Felicity isn't going to stop loving us."

Felicity abruptly opened the door, standing there in hot pink sweat pants and a paler pink t-shirt. "Us who? Who are you talking to?"

Oliver looked over his shoulder to find his doppelganger gone. He looked back at a concerned looking Felicity.

"Oliver," she said uncertainly, "can you see someone else in the room right now?"

"No, of course not," he said quickly. "There is just you and me here."_ And the other me._ But Oliver really didn't think Felicity needed to know about that guy. She'd only worry.

Another round of thunder and lightning rattled the windows and Felicity grimaced, looking around herself nervously. "Is this storm ever going to break?" she asked uneasily. Suddenly there was the sound of heavy rain drops on the roof. Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I guess that's a yes." She looked back at Oliver. "You're sweating again," she said unhappily and then checked his BP wrist monitor. "Heart rate and BP is up too."

"It'll get better now that I can see you," said Oliver unsteadily. He put his hands on her hips. "Can touch you."

Felicity looked a little torn. "It's not even six o'clock yet. What do you want to do?"

"Go to bed," said Oliver without hesitation. "My head is killing me. I just want to lie down." The separation from her had taken its toll on him.

Felicity looked past him to the bed. "Okay, I'll take the sofa."

Oliver shook his head and immediately regretted it, the pounding getting worse. "No, stay with me."

Felicity gnawed on her inner lip. "I don't know if that's such a great idea, Oliver."

"I don't mean to sound overly dramatic but if you don't, I think I'm going to start throwing up," said Oliver tightly.

"Wow, you really know how to make something sound appealing," said Felicity, pulling a face.

"I'm sorry," he said unhappily. "The sofa is too far away. I promise nothing will happen, I just need you near me, to have you close." Oliver dropped his head into the crook of her neck, squeezing his eyes close and inhaling that life-giving scent of hers. "I'm so tired, Felicity. I don't think I've ever been this tired in my life."

Felicity immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and held onto him tightly. "It's okay, Oliver, of course I'll stay with you."

Oliver's shoulders sagged in relief. He supposed this was the toxin taking a bigger hold of his system, this feeling of desperation to get as close as physically possible to Felicity. It was like Felicity was a drug and he had to keep taking bigger and bigger hits of her just to feel anywhere near normal.

Felicity stroked the back of his head. "I have some Tylenol in my bag, do you want some?"

Oliver actually gave a little laugh, considering what he'd just been thinking. "You're the only painkiller I need," he said quietly, revelling just being in Felicity's arms again.

"Don't worry, we're going to get through this together," said Felicity determinedly, still holding onto him tightly. "Nothing bad is going to happen to you or me."

Oliver's gaze drifted over to the corner of the room as he continued to keep a firm hold on Felicity. His doppelganger looked back at him, expression full of warning as he slowly shook his head at Oliver. Oliver swallowed hard and held Felicity even more closely to him, unable to shake this feeling of impending doom which was slowly enveloping him.

**A/N****: Well, Team Riggle takes another hit. I'm sure they'll get some traction on this thing any minute now, no really, I am. **

**And Oliver continues to deteriorate but at least he's got Felicity by his side and that's holding off the tide of full blown crazy… you know, for now. Although all that honesty from Oliver has got to be unnerving Felicity somewhat as well. Lol More honesty to follow in the next chapter – buckle up, peeps. ;) **


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N****: Okay, so I managed to get another chapter done, so you get a chapter. See how that works? ;) **

**Rushing off to work now so there isn't going to be much pre in my amble… if you know what I mean, which, if you're still reading these things 23 chapters in, I'm going to go ahead and assume that you do. :D **

**Must admit I'm starting to get a little tired with all the writing and work. It's just your comments which are keeping me going at this point, so keep 'em coming! There was a please and thank you in there somewhere, I promise. :D **

**This chapter we have some epic Riggle (some of you have already guessed doing what – clever ducklings ;) ) and then some… I don't know, I don't want to say weird Olicity because this is one of my fave conversations between them but I'm not going to lie, there is a fair amount of quirkiness going on, thanks to Felicity. What isn't there to love about our girl? **

**Okay, you take a crack at the chapter while I make my lunch and then we'll meet up at the end. I'll be the one wearing the carnation in my lapel and a sombrero… I shouldn't be that hard to pick. ;) **

**CHAPTER TWENTY THREE**

Diggle felt Roy glaring at him but ignored it. "Here," he said, "can you get the boots on?"

Roy snatched the women's boots off of Diggle, still giving him death stares. "If I can't, do we get to call this ridiculous idea off?"

"Seeing as this is Plan C and we're only on Plan C because you keep killing people, no," snapped Diggle, "we're not calling this one off." He watched Roy struggle into Lyla's knee high boots, already dressed in her black dress and coat. "I think we caught a break. Coates had really big feet for a woman."

"But not that big for a man," grunted Roy as he fought to get the boots on. "My calves are too big."

Diggle grabbed the top of the boot and yanked particularly hard.

"Ow!" complained Roy loudly.

"Walk it off, Cinderella," said Diggle unsympathetically.

"Assuming I can walk in these things," snapped Roy. He grimaced as he fought to find space for his toes in the pointed boot. "Why do women willingly put themselves through this kind of torture? My toes already feel like they're on fire."

"Because it's sexy." Diggle looked him over. "On a woman, that is. On you, not so much."

"I know you think that's an insult but it's not because the last thing I want is you finding me sexually attractive," said Roy darkly.

"I'm pretty confident in making the call that will never happen," said Diggle dryly. "Stand up, let me look at you."

Roy reluctantly stood up, pushing down the stretchy material of his dress over his hips. "How do I look?" he asked unhappily.

"Like the reason low lighting and alcohol was invented," said Diggle, wrinkling his nose.

"Hey, screw you, man," said Roy hotly. "I didn't want to do this in the first place."

Diggle handed him Lyla's wig. "You should have thought about that before you tossed our easy access into Titan Tower over a balcony."

"I didn't toss anyone," said Roy in annoyance as he made a disgusted face and put on the wig. "She slipped and fell. How many more times do I have to say that?"

"Until you say you're sorry, maybe?" suggested Diggle coolly.

"What am I supposed to be sorry for?" asked Roy, giving him a surly look. "Gravity?"

Diggle gave a grunt. "Fine, whatever. Let's just focus on the job at hand, getting into Titan Tower and Coates' laboratory. We have her pass key—"

"Why can't we just mug a couple of guards and use their uniforms to get in with pass key?" interrupted Roy in irritation.

"Because the guards are never in numbers less than four which mean taking out four guys who all have regular check in schedules every ten minutes," said Diggle tightly. "There's too big of a chance that someone will notice something is wrong and set off the alarms and then we're not only dealing with Coates' security team but the fourteen floors of other bad guys all looking to protect their grimy businesses. We need to go in under the radar, so hitch up your panties and stop with all the complaining. This is happening."

"Easy for the guy in pants to say," threw back Roy. "Some of us are taking a bit more of a risk than others with this plan of yours."

"I'll have your back," said Diggle reassuringly.

"I'm not worried about someone shooting me, I'm worried about someone seeing me in this get up," said Roy in irritation. "This is the kind of stuff which psychologically scars a person for life, you know."

"You're wearing a dress," said Diggle flatly, "not walking in on a serial killer disemboweling your entire family. Try and keep a little perspective on this thing, okay?"

Roy gave him a dark look. "Thank you for understanding my pain," he said sarcastically.

"Oh, I understand, I just don't care," said Diggle easily.

Roy scowled at him. "You do realize the next time you ask me for a favour, the answer is going to be a very loud 'hell no', right?"

"With the amount of help you've been so far, not helping would be the favour," shot back Diggle.

Roy made an annoyed noise and then looked down at himself as he swayed a little in the high heeled boots. "I am in a dead woman's clothes," he said through gritted teeth. "I don't know which one of those words I find more disturbing." Roy paused, muscle ticking in his cheek. "It's the woman thing," he said flatly. "Definitely the woman thing."

"We don't have a choice," said Diggle firmly.

"Is it too late to revisit the full frontal attack idea?" asked Roy as Diggle straightened his wig. "I call dibs on the flame thrower."

"It's too dangerous," said Diggle dismissively, "particularly when we've got a viable option."

"How is me doing a Rupaul impersonation a viable option?" asked Roy bitterly.

"First of all, you wish you looked as good as Rupaul in a dress," said Diggle, lips twitching.

"If there is any justice in the world, a herd of those alligators from across the street would come out right now and maim you horribly for doing this to me and enjoying it so much," snapped Roy.

"Congregation."

"What?"

"The collective noun for alligators is congregation, not herd."

"It would be physically impossible for me to hate you more than I do right now," said Roy darkly.

"I'm not the one who took out not one but two ways into this building already today," shot back Diggle. "You should just be thankful I'm still letting you be a part of this thing."

Roy waved an outraged at his attire. "Thankful?" he practically yelled. "I should be thank for _this_? If this is such a great idea, how come I don't see you jumping into the women's clothes?" Roy held up a warning finger to him. "And if you use the word petite again, I swear to God, this _will_ officially become a spree for me!"

"I don't have to use that word," said Diggle flatly. "I can use words like _six foot three_ and _black_ as pretty good reasons as to why I wouldn't make a passable Lyla Coates."

"Oh, how convenient," said Roy bitterly, "you get to play the race card."

Diggle rolled his eyes. "I think it's more than justified in this case."

"You could still pass, from a distance," argued Roy, refusing to go down without a fight over this one.

"If that distance was Hawaii, then sure, I might agree with you," said Diggle, straight-faced. "Otherwise I'm pretty confident in saying they'd make me before I even crossed the street." He gave a little shrug. "And besides, I can't fit into the clothes because I'm not-"

"Don't say it," said Roy sharply.

"Fine-boned," said Diggle, trying not to laugh despite the seriousness of the situation. It may not be particularly noble or even grown up of him, but there was something a little too much fun about annoying the younger man.

Roy's eyes narrowed menacingly. "When this is over, you and I are going to revisit this conversation and it's not going to be pretty."

Diggle stood back and looked Roy over in his Lyla Coates attire. "And you have a lot of experience with not being pretty," he noted. Diggle handed him the large, black sunglasses Lyla was wearing when he'd grabbed her. "Put these on, they should hide most of the damage and pull your hair more around your face."

"It you ever tell anyone about this, I will make your life a living hell," ground out Roy, doing as he was instructed.

'I think you may have peaked early there with that one," said Diggle, straight-faced. "Just remember lives are at stake here, Oliver and Felicity's lives to be exact and they've both gone out on a limb for you more than once. You owe them this."

"Hey, pack your bags everyone, looks like we're going on a guilt trip."

"Just get in there, get the USB stick and get out." Diggle handed him an earpiece. "I'll be with you all the way and if things go south, I'll get you out." The tiniest smile touched his lips.

Roy's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You're about to say something that is going to make me want to punch you in the face, aren't you?"

"I'm a sucker for a damsel in distress," finished off Diggle, finding Roy's annoyance endlessly amusing.

"I hate you."

"You mentioned." Diggle glanced out the window. "It's getting late. We need to get moving on this. It'll be dark soon." He looked back at Roy and frowned. "Which would probably work in our favour, to be honest."

Roy rolled his eyes. "And people will be going home, less guards to worry about."

"It's a twenty-four hour a day operation over there," said Diggle. "We can't count on that. We have to try and keep to the stealth angle."

"Do I get a weapon or does the sacrificial lamb just have to wing it?"

"You can take something small, something which will fit into your coat."

"Well, I'll have some extra room what with me not having my dignity anymore."

"If you're waiting for me to feel sorry for you, you're going to have a long wait."

"If this all goes horribly wrong, which we both know it will," said Roy, holding his gaze steadily. "I want you to know I blame you for everything."

"Duly noted," said Diggle wryly. "Now, let's breach the security of that building across the street and try not to get ourselves killed."

"I'm guessing that is going to be pretty easy for the guy sitting in the car, away from all the action," said Roy acerbically as he turned around and headed out of the room, teetering in his high heels.

"Try and walk more like a woman," Diggle called out to him as Roy walked away.

"Try and bite me," threw back Roy over his shoulder in annoyance as he gingerly attempted the stairs.

Diggle started to follow Roy, hoping they'd done enough for the younger man to pass as Lyla Coates. For all the joking around he was doing, Diggle was worried about the safety of Roy. The kid was resourceful but Diggle did feel like he was sending the lamb into the lion's den, which he essentially was, even if the lamb had a smart mouth. He hadn't been kidding when he told Roy he'd have his back. He wasn't going to let anything happen to Roy but they really needed to get that anti-toxin formula before it became too late for Oliver.

#

Oliver lay on his side, under the covers and watched Felicity fidget, attempting to settle in beside him. Eventually she got herself comfortable, plumping the pillow and lying on her side as well, facing him.

She gave him a nervous smile. "You okay?"

Oliver slipped his arm around her waist and drew Felicity closer to him, tangling their legs together. "I am now," he said simply.

Felicity looked worried. "You're still sweating and you're shaking. The XR-320 is really starting to take its toll, isn't it?"

"It's not that bad, as long as you're near me," he said, only half-lying. Oliver's hand moved restlessly on her back. "Talk to me. I need to hear your voice."

"People don't often ask me to keep on talking," noted Felicity wryly. "It's usually them telling me to stop."

"I like listening to you talk. I never know what you're going to say."

"That makes two of us. It's a real crap shoot up there."

Oliver's hand tightened on her hip. "The sound of your voice, it makes me feel—" he closed his eyes, "human."

"Oh," said Felicity a little uncertainly, "okay, what do you want me to talk about?"

He opened his eyes again, staring into her worried blue eyes. "Anything, I don't care, just talk," said Oliver hoarsely.

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Hmm… I'm drawing a blank. I don't know where to start."

"Tell me what you wanted to be when you grew up," suggested Oliver.

"A mermaid," said Felicity without hesitation.

"A mermaid?" repeated Oliver. Of course she did. He smiled. "There is no such thing."

"You don't know that," protested Felicity.

"Have you ever seen one in the flesh?" countered Oliver.

"I haven't seen Regis Philbin in the flesh, that doesn't mean he's not real." Felicity pursed her lips. "Although I do side eye his hair, not sure that is completely legit."

Oliver settled in more, enjoying the comfort of once again having Felicity in his arms. "Why a mermaid?" His hand crept up under her shirt, allowing him to run his palm over the naked flesh of Felicity's back. Oliver felt his muscles relax at the simple touch as he stroked her back and listened to every word which was falling from those perfect lips of hers.

"Because you get to swim under the sea with all the fish and it's quiet and you have this amazing tail. I'd love being able to breath underwater and just be able to hang out with all the underwater sea creatures." She looked at Oliver intently. "Who _wouldn't_ want to be a mermaid and be able to do all that stuff? When I was seven I saw 'Splash' for the first time, you know, that Tom Hanks' movie about the mermaid?"

"I remember Daryl Hannah in a bath tub," said Oliver, lips twitching.

"Well, I fell in love with her."

"Me too." Oliver half-smiled. "Possibly for different reasons, though."

"Possibly," said Felicity wryly. "I was convinced I was a mermaid too and I just needed to work out how to get my tail to show up. I used to sit in the bathtub for hours, filling it up with salty water, sure that my tail was going to appear at any minute." She grimaced. "One time, when my mom was at work, she came home and found me asleep in the tub and completely freaked out."

Oliver frowned. "I'm not surprised, you could have drowned."

"Not if I'd managed to turn into a mermaid."

"Was that the argument you used on your mom?"

"Yeah… she didn't buy it."

"I'm not entirely shocked to hear that." Even though this had happened many years ago to Felicity, Oliver felt himself freaking out a bit himself just hearing the story.

"From then on, whenever my mom went to work, she'd take every plug in the place with her when she did."

"Wait, your mom left you alone in the house when you were seven?" asked Oliver in disbelief. "That's child abuse."

"No, it wasn't," said Felicity defensively. "We were living in a hotel and Mom worked in the bar downstairs. She wasn't far away and she always used to come and check on me regularly."

"Thank God otherwise you could have drowned," said Oliver unsteadily.

"Yeah, well, I wasn't giving up when Mom took all the plugs. I knew it was just a matter of time before I turned into a mermaid and I needed to soak in the tub for it to happen. I started to try and work out what I could use as a substitute plug. In case you're wondering, these thing do _not_ work as plugs in a bathtub…" Felicity started listing them off on her fingers. "A towel, soap, a Barbie doll head, cheese—"

"Cheese?" repeated Oliver, completely entranced at yet another slightly odd conversation with Felicity.

"Grated or block and _definitely_ don't try the cheese in a can – that stuff just floats. It's useless."

Oliver couldn't help but picture the seven year old Felicity industriously trying out all these different ideas, stubbornly refusing to give up hope. It was so her. "You're amazing," he said in awe.

"I'm amazing because I back up the hotel plumbing with cheese?" said Felicity skeptically. "That's not the word the hotel maintenance guy used."

"So, you didn't ever turn into a mermaid then?" he asked indulgently.

"No," said Felicity, still looking crestfallen about that. "Apart from the not being able to swim thing, I think I would have made an awesome mermaid."

Oliver lifted his head from the pillow, eyes widening a little. "You can't swim?"

She wrinkled her nose. "Not really. I'd call what I do more of an aggressive type of floating then actual swimming."

"I've never met anyone who couldn't swim."

"I'm pretty sure that isn't true. You thought I could swim up until ten seconds ago."

She had a point. "How is it that you didn't learn?"

Felicity gave a little shrug. "I don't know, we moved around so much, and I went to so many different schools, it never seemed to happen." She wrinkled her nose. "Besides, we Jews are a desert people, we're not big on the water."

"But you still wanted to be a mermaid."

Felicity pursed her lips. "I guess I like to swim upstream against the flow sometimes." She looked thoughtful. "Aggressively float upstream," Felicity corrected herself.

"I'm going to teach you how to swim."

Felicity's eyes went wide in horror. "You are _never_ seeing me in a bathing suit."

"Fine, we won't wear any." Oliver watched the blush creep across Felicity's cheeks at that remark. He loved making her blush and if he hadn't promised her that he'd behave himself, Oliver would have loved to make her blush a whole lot more. Felicity just talking to him, lying so close, skin on skin was making Oliver feel better. He really had felt like death when they'd first laid down on the bed but as always, being near Felicity was making him feel a whole lot better.

"I-ah… well, I don't think I need to know how to swim," she said, flustered. "I live in the city."

"A city by the sea," pointed out Oliver. "You really need to know how to swim, Felicity."

She cleared her throat, gaze skittering away from his. "That's a problem for another day. Besides, I'm not giving up on my mermaid quest. It could still happen and then I'll just know how to swim."

"That doesn't seem like a very realistic goal," said Oliver dryly.

"Well, that's what happens when you start talking mermaids," said Felicity knowingly. "You know, when I got a bit older and found out how sex worked, I got pretty confused about the whole mermaid thing to be honest."

Oliver looked at her blankly.

"Okay, assuming they're a real species and don't do the turning into human things because that would be totally unrealistic—"

Oliver was trying not to smile because Felicity was being so sincere. "Oh yeah, _that's_ the unrealistic thing about mermaids."

"Cynicism isn't a good color on you, Oliver," said Felicity a little primly. "We don't know what is in the ocean's depths. Each year scientists discover 15 000 new species and over 90% of those are in the ocean. It's only a matter of time before they find sentient beings under the water."

"Okay," said Oliver, not going to argue anymore, even though he knew she was wrong.

"And that's where I get confused about mermaids," she continued on. "When I was seven I wanted to be a mermaid, meet a cute merman and have gorgeous little mer-babies."

"Sounds like a normal progression." Oliver half-smiled. "Somewhat normal anyways, except for the blaringly obvious."

"But how do they have the babies?" asked Felicity, genuinely concerned. "All the fun parts are fish and after watching a lot of Animal Planet, I've discovered that fish procreation is nothing to write home about." She propped herself up on an elbow, warming the topic. "Take the Angler fish for example, the ones with the big teeth and glowing tentacle thing coming from their head. The female is like twenty times bigger than the male and when it comes time to make babies, the little male bites the female on the butt and then she slowly absorbs him until all that is left are his tiny little testicles, embedded in her bottom and she uses them to fertilize her eggs." Felicity looked really concerned. "Can you imagine if that is how mer-people procreate?" she asked in horror. "Not even Disney could turn that into a love story." Felicity glared at him. "Why are you laughing? I'm being serious here."

Oliver had started to be unable to hold back his amusement when Felicity had gotten to the part about a female fish ending up with testicles. "I'm sorry," he said, still grinning, "but if there is such a thing as mermaids and mermen, I'm pretty sure that isn't how they do it."

"All the legends talk about a half-fish, half-person when they talk about mer-people," said Felicity, obviously having given this a lot of thought, "but it would honestly make more sense, at least reproductively, if the top half was the fish and the bottom half was human." She screwed up her face. "Which doesn't help at all because I don't know if I could fall in love with a man who had the head of a fish. That's probably shallow of me—"

"I'd call that more of a relief that you don't find fish sexually attractive," said Oliver, lips twitching.

Felicity threw him a mildly disgruntled look. "I'm just saying that I'm not unaware of the issues that surround the existence of mermaids and mermen. Maybe they wouldn't have tails at all, maybe they'd look just like us although they'd be stronger, of course, because of the extra pressure of living under the sea." She bit her bottom lip, looking excited. "Imagine one of them just walking out of the water one day, able to breathe underwater, swim really fast, talk to fish – he'd make an awesome superhero."

"How would being able to talk to fish be a useful skill in the superhero business?" asked Oliver skeptically.

"He could control them, get them to do his bidding."

"Again, how does that help when someone is robbing a bank? Even if he could get a Great White shark to do his bidding, you throw that sucker in the foyer of Starling City First National bank and he's going to be dead within a couple of minutes. As an ally, sharks would not be my go to, not on dry land, anyways."

"Obviously he'd be leaning more towards the maritime crimes," said Felicity knowingly. "Can't you just picture the headlines – Pirates Taken Out by Seaman."

Oliver gave her an odd look.

Felicity frowned. "Wait, I don't think Seaman is a good name for a superhero. Oceanman… no, Waterman… oh wait, got it!" she said Felicity excitedly. "Aquaman, he should totally be called Aquaman."

"Aha," said Oliver, not totally convinced about that name.

"You know what should happen," said Felicity, warming to her theme. "You, Roy, Sarah, Batman, Barry as the Flash and Aquaman should form a club, a superhero club. Wait, no, not club, a society maybe?" She screwed up her face. "No, that sounds like you'd be serving cucumber sandwiches in between missions. League, it'd be a league, one which stands for justice." Felicity looked down at Oliver. "You should be writing this down," she informed him. "This is all good stuff."

"I don't see me and that Batman freak teaming up anytime soon—"

"Why is Batman a freak? He dresses up in body armor, hides his identity and takes out the bad guys in Gotham City." Felicity gave him a pointed look. "Careful closing the door in your glass house there, buddy. You don't want anything to shatter."

"Batman and I are nothing alike," grumbled Oliver.

"How do you figure that out?"

Oliver scowled. "The guy wears a cape. I wouldn't be caught dead in a cape."

Felicity arched an eyebrow. "_That's_ your big point of difference between the two of you? How you choose to accessorize?"

"I thought we were talking about mermaids," said Oliver, realizing he was on the losing side of this debate.

"You really don't believe someone like my Aquaman could exist, do you?" she challenged him.

Oliver let out an exasperated breath. "No, not really, well, not at all."

"Do you remember exactly when it was you lost your soul?" asked Felicity dourly.

"Not believing in underwater men doesn't make me soulless, it makes me an adult," he countered.

Felicity pouted. "So, what, I'm a child then, for believing that we don't know everything yet?"

Oliver cupped her face and gave a soft smile. "You're full of light and hope and belief and I love that about you."

"Mm," said Felicity, not looking particularly mollified. "You do realize that if my Aquaman—"

Oliver's expression darkened. "Stop calling him _my_ Aquaman," he said in annoyance, feeling the now familiar sting of jealousy.

Felicity rolled her eyes at him. "You can't possibly be jealous of someone you don't even believe exists."

"You'd think," said Oliver darkly, knowing that he was regardless.

"Anyways, if my-I mean, if this man does stroll out of the ocean one day and proves me right, you do realize I will never let you forget it." She gave him an intent look. "And I mean _never_."

"Felicity, if fish boy does walk out of the ocean one day, I will kiss Diggle," said Oliver without hesitation.

"French kiss," said Felicity, upping the ante.

"Fine, French kiss Diggle," said Oliver blithely, knowing he was in no danger of ever losing this bet. "And there maybe even some over the sweater action to go with it."

Felicity pursed her lips. "You know, I'm just going to make the call now – this is definitely one of our weirder conversations." She put a hand on his chest. "But you've stopped shaking."

"Because of you," said Oliver huskily.

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "That's not a good thing, Oliver," she reminded him unhappily. "I shouldn't have this kind of effect on you."

"You've always had this kind of effect on me." He threaded his fingers through hers. "From the first day we met."

"I really don't think that is true. Your memory is a little off."

"The first time we met I remember smiling," said Oliver, holding her gaze intently. "I mean a proper smile, one I hadn't planned or given because I knew that was what was expected in the moment. I just smiled because I couldn't not smile." He searched her face. "Felicity, do you know how long it had been since I'd done that? It was before the island, before my life was ripped to pieces, that was the last time and within seconds of meeting you, you gave that back to me." Oliver grimaced. "It's taken me awhile to work out what that meant, too long in fact but I guess I'm not really that smart when it comes to love."

"Oh," breathed Felicity unevenly, looking at him wide-eyed. "I-I… oh."

Oliver could see he'd really shocked her with that little revelation. "Felicity," he said intently, "you do know that me telling you I love you has nothing to do with the XR-320 and everything to do with the fact that I've been in love with you for a long time now. The gas just undumbed me." Oliver paused. "Okay, that wasn't the best sentence to sell my newly discovered intelligence to you." He tried again. "What I meant to say was that while the gas may have lowered my inhibitions around you, it has nothing to do with how I feel about you… how I've always felt about you. It just allowed me to finally tell you the truth."

"So, you were in love with me even when you were sleeping with all those other women?" asked Felicity uncertainly.

Oliver grimaced. "I mentioned being dumb just before, right?" He sighed. "I was running, Felicity. You scare the crap out of me, you still do."

"I scare _you_?" she asked in disbelief. "How is that even possible?"

"You make me feel so much, more than I've been comfortable feeling for a long time," said Oliver unevenly. "I tried to fight it but I just couldn't." There was a long silence from Felicity after he'd said that and Oliver began to get worried. "You've stopped talking. Why have you stopped talking?"

"Processing," mumbled Felicity. "I'm processing."

"You normally process out loud," he observed. "It's kind of your thing."

"There's a lot going on up there right now. If I let it out, it'd probably just sound like this…" Felicity made an odd, strangled squawking noise, like a parakeet being flushed down the toilet.

Oliver flinched. "Okay, that's a little disconcerting."

"I told you."

"No, I mean it's concerning that you seem to be freaking out over me telling you I've been in love with you for a while now."

Felicity's brow creased. "It-it's a lot for a girl to take in."

"But you believe me, don't you?" he pushed. Oliver needed to be sure that Felicity knew his feelings for her were real and not some side effect of being poisoned.

Felicity looked a little anxious. "Yes, I believe you." She then seemed to collect herself and smiled. "Of course I believe you."

Oliver relaxed the muscles he hadn't even realized he'd been tensing. "Good, because it's true." He cupped her face and stroked her cheek. "Tell me something else about your childhood."

"Like what?"

"I don't know, tell me something you've never told anyone else before."

Felicity grimaced. "You sure you want to go down that path?"

Oliver smiled, snuggling in closer to her. "Positive." He really didn't know what Felicity was going to say next and that was one of the many magical things about the young woman in his arms.

"I once slapped a duck." Felicity looked stricken. "Don't judge me."

Oliver blinked. "I'm probably going to need more of a run up to that story."

Felicity sighed heavily. "Okay, but I want you to know going in, that he started it."

Oliver just let Felicity talk, her words washing over him, making him forget about the pounding in his head and the aching of his muscles. He never took his eyes off Felicity's animated face as she told him about her run in with the duck and why she was almost certain bees were from another planet and a lot of other scatter logical observations and random thoughts. As Oliver lay there and listened to Felicity talk, he imagined a life where he'd be able to have Felicity in his bed every night and wake up to her every morning. The thought made him give another one of those involuntary smiles. It was the last thing he remembered before drifting off to sleep, more content then he'd ever remembered being.

**A/N****: Okay, it wasn't planned, but I couldn't help but do my little homage to DC comics and the potential of a Justice League shout out. ;) And of course, as soon as the muse made the link between Felicity's mermaid fascination and Aquaman, I knew I'd have to write a story where Felicity and Aquaman do meet. I'm thinking Justin Hartley who played Aquaman in that show that never made it past the pilot (booo!). How much fun would that be? Particularly considering the wager Oliver just laid down. I mean, let's be honest, who here hasn't thought about some kind of hot and heavy action between Oliver and Diggle? Lol Too much fun/funny overload! And I don't see Oliver reacting well to Felicity's fantasy man suddenly popping up in their lives. It will so be on! ;) What do you say, once I put this story to bed, anyone interested in reading about that little drama? :D **


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N****: Hello my dears. :D I know, I know, it's been two days since my last update, I'm a horrible person. Please accept this pillow case full of excess body hair by way of an apology (no take backsies). Funny story, I actually did do that, stuffed a pillow case with excess hair and gave it as a gift after another friend did up a pretty pillow case for me. It wasn't all my own hair, you understand. Hmm… don't know if that makes it less or more weird now that I think about it. There was a reason for it at the time, a running joke but now that I've typed that all out it seems more than a little odd… like that's the kind of gift serial killers would also give… I should probably be more concerned about that then I actually am. I wonder what that means, me thinking like a serial killer… don't answer that. **

**We meet up today with me having two things weighing on my brain (apart from a growing concern I have the brain of a serial killer). The first is about where I'm up to in the story about 10 chapters ahead. I've thrown another curve ball into the story and I just know when we get there, you're all going to lose your minds and hurl obscenities at me for drawing this all out, along with cat urine soaked tomatoes and rotten eggs. I just want you to know long before it happens, that I know… and I understand and I will take those tomatoes and eggs and make an, in all probability, inedible egg salad with it. I also want you to know that the greater the angst, the greater the pay off. People seemed to enjoy the mermaid moment between Oliver and Felicity in the last chapter which is wonderful. I just want to let you know for all the pain and suffering I put you through in coming chapters, gentle reader, know that we will mermaid again when it comes to Olicity. Yes, I made the word mermaid into a verb… I can do that, you're not the boss of me. **

**And on the subject of upcoming chapters, let me briefly prep you for this chapter. I'm not going to lie, we're changing gears in the upcoming chapters when it comes to Olicity and this chapter might have you a little *what the?* but I did kind of have a tenuous link to what is coming in this chapter with the last couple of lines in the previous chapter. It's definitely a link but I wouldn't, you know, suspend my entire family over a ravine using said link. I just wanted to preface what might come across as an abrupt change of tone/pace in the next few chapters and let you know I'm aware of it and tried my best to kind of give you a run up at it, albeit a small one. None of that probably makes sense to you (understandably so) but the joy of fanfic for me (and the big downside for you guys), is that I get to babble my thoughts and concerns out to my audience while you're unable to look away despite the horror, like a house burning down, or an episode of Jersey Shore. **

**Okay, that's out in the open. Now, my second concern I'll address with you tomorrow when I post the next chapter. I don't want to weigh you down with all the white noise in my head at once. So, stay tuned on that front. **

**And while you're tuning… please take a gander at the next installment of this little saga…**

**PS. FPR rating warning of 4… maybe 5 ahead. **

**CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR**

"I told you this plan sucked!" yelled Roy as he took the stairs two at a time, racing up them as fast as his booted high heels would allow.

"The plan was fine, the guy implementing it was the weak point," shot back Diggle, a voice in his ear.

"I got the USB stick, didn't I?" snapped Roy, taking a second to glance down the internal stair case to see a growing number of bad guys joining the chase. "It's not my fault some idiot wanted to try and talk to Coates and got too close." Roy had managed to get through the foyer security, into the laboratory and Coates' office and retrieve the USB stick. It had all been going well until he'd tried to leave and some underling in a lab coat had wanted to talk to who he thought was Coates. The guy had walked up to him just as Roy was about to head out the laboratory door. The lab worker had taken one close look at Roy and immediately attempted to raise the alarm. Roy had punched him out but by then other people in the lab were noticing something was awry and the next thing Roy knew, there was the sound of alarms going off. He'd raced out of the laboratory only to have Diggle direct him to the stairs. "Remind me again," he panted, "why am I going up? Up doesn't feel like a way out, it feels more like a dead end."

"Just trust me," said Diggle firmly. "Get to the eighth floor and I'll take it from there."

Roy could hear the other men getting closer and he attempted to take the stairs three at a time to gain some ground but was still having trouble because of the woman's boots. He stumbled and just managed to save himself from face planting onto the stairs from his quick reflexes. "Crap!"

"What's wrong?" asked Diggle sharply.

"These boots are trying to kill me," growled Roy. He looked back down through the stairwell railing to see the growing swarm of men racing up the stairs after him. "But it looks like they'll have to get in the back of a long line." Roy sprang to his feet, ripping off one boot, taking a few stairs and then tearing off the other. He reached inside Lyla's coat and drew out his small crossbow and shot it at the wall behind him as some of the men reached the landing below him. Roy took off running up the stairs again, just as the arrow in the wall gave a little spark and a white cloud of gas was released into the air. The guards below him began to choke on the tear gas, slowing them down significantly.

"How far away are you?" asked Diggle intently.

"One more flight to go," puffed Roy, quickening his speed with his now bare feet. Roy covered the distance in seconds and was bursting out onto the eighth floor. "I'm there!"

"Go to the window," Diggle instructed him quickly.

Roy looked down one end of the corridor and then the other. "There isn't a window."

"Yes, there is."

"No, there isn't!"

"Are you on the right floor?"

"I ran up eight flights of stairs, of course I'm on the right floor!" snapped Roy.

"Eight flights will put you on the ninth floor, you idiot!" said Diggle in exasperation. "The ground floor is the first one."

Roy suddenly realized Diggle was right. "Crap!"

"You need to go back a flight."

Roy could hear the sound of multiple sets of feet on the internal staircase on the other side of the door he was standing in front of. He grimaced. "That may be a little tricky."

"Figure it out," Diggle advised him sharply. "Otherwise you're going to die as a drag queen."

"Over my dead body," said Roy in horror.

"Kind of my point, kid. Now, get yourself down a floor so I can save your ass."

Roy's jaw hardened as the stairwell door started to open. _Okay, here we go…_

#

Oliver pushed on the large wooden doors and stepped through into the house. He paused and frowned, realizing he was home and not remembering how he'd gotten there. Oliver looked down at him to find he was wearing his Arrow leathers, in fact, he was still holding the bow. He blinked a couple of times, trying to get his bearings. Looking around the foyer area the twin staircases were festooned with Christmas decorations. He pushed back his hood and slowly walked into the main living room to find an enormous Christmas tree, completely decked out with all the trimmings and Christmas lights twinkling away happily on it. Underneath the tree was a mountain of brightly wrapped presents spilling out everywhere. The whole room smelt of Christmas and looked like a real family lived there. Oliver cocked his head, trying to work out what he was looking at. Was it Christmas again already? He couldn't remember. Oliver retraced his steps and started to head up the stairs but then he saw a light under the kitchen door and he changed course, heading there instead. Keeping a tight grip on his bow, Oliver carefully pushed open the kitchen door and looked inside. The first thing he saw was Felicity leaning against the kitchen bench, a tub of ice cream in her hand, a spoon in the other. She was wearing a man's white button up shirt, one of his Oliver realized, her hair out and loose around her shoulders.

Felicity's eyes went a little wide as she looked up and saw him. "Oh, Oliver," she said in surprise and then squinted. "It is you, isn't it? I don't have my glasses on."

"It's me," said Oliver unsteadily, walking towards her, shocked to see her there.

Felicity wrinkled her nose as he came to stand beside her. She put a hand on his chest. "You're wearing your leathers," she tutted. "You do get how a secret identity works, right? Rule number one is not to walk into your house in your Arrow outfit. It's kind of a giveaway." Felicity gave him a pointed look. "You're lucky it's two o'clock in the morning and no one is around."

"You're around," said Oliver, still staring at her in amazement. He hesitated. "Why is that?"

"I got hungry."

Oliver stared at her. "So, you decided to come here?"

"Yes, Oliver, I'd heard strange tales that the kitchen was a place food was stored." She held up the tub of ice cream. "And what do you know, it's true," said Felicity teasingly.

"But-but why are you in _this_ kitchen?" asked Oliver, still trying to understand.

"Because if I was to go to Baskin and Robins, I'd have to put pants on," said Felicity blithely. "And I couldn't be bothered."

Oliver's gaze went down to the lengthy expanse of Felicity's bare legs. "Okay," he said faintly, still not understanding. "Am I dreaming?"

Felicity cocked her head. "I don't know, are you?" She reached up to touch his face with one hand. "Are you alright? Did you hit your head out there tonight?"

Oliver's eyes went wide as he caught a flash on Felicity's left hand. He quickly grabbed her hand and looked at the wedding and engagement ring on her ring finger. "You're married," he said in dismay. Oliver gave her a stricken look. "Who is he?" Oliver instantly wanted the man dead… after a lot of pain.

Felicity rolled her eyes. "Boy, this bit never gets old for you, does it? Yes, Oliver, the fat woman eating ice cream in the kitchen is your wife. You're just going to have to deal, okay, because it's too late to back out now."

Oliver held up his left hand and stared in amazement at the wedding band he was sporting there. "We-we're married," he breathed.

"Are you sure you didn't hit your head?" asked Felicity, starting to look worried now. "See, this is why I wanted to stay at the lair and back you up but no, you insisted on sending me home to get some rest." She gave him a pointed look. "And just so you know, there is no such thing as sleeping for two, I looked it up in the baby books. So, you're not going to get away with using that excuse again, mister."

"Two?" rasped Oliver.

"You know, us hormonal, pregnant women aren't always amused by the fathers of our babies pretending they don't remember knocking us up," said Felicity dryly.

Oliver's head was spinning. He reached out a shaking hand to Felicity's stomach which had a decided bulge to it which he hadn't noticed at first, because his shirt was far too big for her. "You're pregnant?" he said in wonder. Oliver looked at Felicity in amazement. "And it's mine?"

"Well, it's either yours or Conrad, the pizza delivery guy," said Felicity straight-faced. "We'll know for sure if bub is born holding a bow and arrow or a voucher for half-price Tuesdays."

Oliver's hand tightened on her stomach bump, feeling the hard swell against his hand. "You're having my baby," he said, voice constricting, still in a deep state of shock.

"You know, we're five months into this thing," said Felicity in vague amusement. "Are we going to be playing this game right up until the nine months are up? Because, just a heads up, when I'm actually pushing baby Queen out into this world, I may not have the sense of humor about it that I do now."

Oliver managed to drag his eyes from the sight of his hand cupping her stomach to give Felicity an overwhelmed look.

She just smiled and laid a hand on his chest. "Yes, I've got you now, my pretty. There is no escaping my nefarious clutches now that I'm with child."

"Felicity," he rasped, so happy in that moment he couldn't see straight. This was everything he'd ever wanted but hadn't dared let himself even hope for with any woman and particularly Felicity. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Oliver," she said easily, "but you really need to go upstairs and change in case anyone else sees you in that outfit."

Oliver hesitated. "You'll be here when I get back?" he asked a little anxiously. Oliver was still afraid this was a dream and if it was, he never wanted to wake up from it.

"Of course I will," said Felicity easily, holding up her ice cream. "I've still got half a tub to go."

"Do you think ice cream at 2am is the best thing in your condition?" fretted Oliver.

"It's choc-mint. Mint is a vegetable… isn't it?"

Oliver pulled a face. "I really don't think it is."

Felicity gave a careless shrug. "Well, the ice cream is green and everyone knows green things are inherently nutritious."

Oliver shook his head indulgently at her. "I think you and I need to have a serious talk about your diet," he said in amusement.

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Can't wait."

Oliver reluctantly took his hand off of Felicity's stomach and headed out of the kitchen to go and change his clothes. He walked up the stairs and to his bedroom… their bedroom now… and walked inside. His room was as he remembered it but now there was decided evidence that he was now sharing his bedroom with someone else. Bits and pieces were scattered around the room which Oliver recognized as Felicity's. A lap top, that stuffed owl he remembered from her bedroom, some dresses thrown carelessly over the back of a chair but it was the photos which caught Oliver's attention the most. He walked up to the first silver framed picture and picked it up. It was obviously a wedding photo, he and Felicity grinning at the camera, confetti still clinging to their hair and clothes. Oliver couldn't help but smile back at the happy couple. The next photo was another wedding one, this time with him and Thea. His sister looked relaxed and happy, they both did. Oliver looked at another picture of himself, Felicity and Diggle, caught in a moment of laughter, still in their wedding clothes. He shook his head in disbelief, wondering how he could have forgotten what was obviously such a joyous day. Oliver quickly changed into his casual clothes, wanting to get back to Felicity as fast as he could. He was back in the kitchen within minutes, walking in to find Felicity at the sink, washing her spoon. Oliver came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her burgeoning waist, hugging her back to him. "Miss me?" he asked playfully.

Felicity gave a little laugh and leaned back into him. "Oh yeah," she said mischievously, "I was counting the seconds."

Oliver rubbed his cheek against hers as Felicity turned off the faucet.

"You and I need to talk about your mom."

Oliver tensed a little. "My mom?" he repeated hesitantly.

Felicity turned around in his arms. "I know this is her first grandchild and all but she's going a little crazy with the present thing. Have you seen what's under the tree and it's still another five shopping days until Christmas." She gave a lopsided smile. "And Walter is possibly worse. Between the two of them, I'm pretty confident we'll be able to open a Toys R Us store come New Year's."

"My-my mom's alive?" rasped Oliver.

"Alive and armed with a credit card," said Felicity wryly.

"And she and Walter are still together?" Now his head really was spinning.

"Together and enabling the heck out of each other with the present buying." Felicity gave a little laugh. "It's cute but I don't want our daughter to be spoiled, Oliver. We agreed on that and Thea isn't exactly being helpful in that area either. She's bought so many clothes for bub already. Your sister is definitely shopping for two these days. I love your family, Oliver, but they can be a little over the top sometimes."

Oliver was reeling, he had his whole family together and he and Felicity were starting a new one. This was the best moment of his life. "We're having a girl?" he asked, unable to stop the grin which came to his face.

Felicity cocked her head at him. "I know I keep asking this, but you're not really worried about your first born not being a boy, are you? You know, an heir to carry on the Queen family name."

Seeing as children were something Oliver had pretty much given up on being able to factor into the life he'd chosen to lead, he wanted Felicity to know she was worrying needlessly. "Are you kidding me? You know how I feel about being surrounded by beautiful women," he said teasingly. "You've made me the happiest man in the world, Felicity Smoak."

"Queen," she reminded him. "Turns out I'm a traditional girl after all."

"Felicity Queen," he repeated, liking the sound of that more than he could put words to. "Mrs. Queen."

Felicity reached up and stroked the back of his head. "Mr. Queen," she said huskily.

Oliver dropped his head and pressed his forehead against hers. "I need this to be real," he groaned.

Felicity moved in closer, rubbing her body against his. "Doesn't it feel real?" she whispered in his ear.

Oliver gave a little shudder. "Yes," he growled, hands going to that luscious bottom of hers which had him so undone. "Very real." Oliver's hands tightened on Felicity's flesh. "And very perfect."

Felicity went up on her tip toes and pressed her lips against his and Oliver hungrily returned her kisses. His tongue demanded entry into her mouth, starving for the taste of her and Felicity offered up no resistance. Oliver gave a little growl and tightened his hold on Felicity's bottom, lifting her off the ground and depositing her on the nearby kitchen table. He immediately pushed her legs apart, standing in between them as Felicity hooked her leg around his backside, urging him closer. Oliver didn't need the encouragement. Not breaking the kiss he pushed himself hard against her core, feeling delicious shivers of pleasure skitter down his spine, making his knees go a little weak. Felicity's hands went to his waist, pulling his shirt from the waistband of his pants. Her soft hands found their way up under his shirt and then she was lightly raking her nails down his back, causing more nerve endings to flair into life.

Oliver followed her lead, hand sneaking up under Felicity's shirt, luxuriating in the tantalizing softness he found with each little dip and curve of her body. He pulled her closer, arching Felicity's back so her breasts and stomach were pressed hard into his chest. The fullness of her breasts rubbing against his chest set off a chain reaction in Oliver's body, like forest fire burning its way throughout his entire body. "I need to see you," he groaned against her lips, other hand fumbling for the buttons of her shirt. Oliver's fingers felt clumsy in his urgency, taking too long to uncover his prize.

Felicity gave a little giggle, obviously amused by his impatience. "Hope you had better coordination out on the street tonight," she teased him as Oliver struggled with the little buttons.

Oliver gave her a mischievous look. "I didn't have all of my blood pooling in one area while I was out on the street."

Felicity bit her bottom lip and arched a seductive eyebrow. "And where might that one area be, Mr. Queen?" she asked throatily.

Oliver ground the growing hardness between his legs against her. "You tell me, Mrs. Queen," he rasped.

"I see your problem," said Felicity with feigned concern. "This could be serious. You should really get someone to look at that."

Oliver nipped playfully at her bottom lip. "My thoughts exactly." He took one of her hands and moved it between their bodies, making her cup the aching hardness between his legs. Oliver was forced to bite back another groan as Felicity tightened her grip on the delicate area of his body.

"Hmm… the swelling seems to be getting worse," said Felicity, eyes twinkling. "It's more serious than I thought. I think I need a closer look." She went to slip her hand down the front of Oliver's pants but he was forced to grab her wrist and stop her.

"Felicity," he groaned in frustration, "I _really_ love this game but if you do that, it's going to be a short-lived one." Oliver could feel his control slipping. He was just too aroused and he wanted this to last.

"Well," she purred, nuzzling his neck, "we don't want that, do we?"

Felicity started to rub her breasts slowly against him again and Oliver realized he couldn't wait any longer to uncover those treasures. He found Felicity's lips again, kissing her hard and laying her down on the table. Oliver broke the kiss, his hands going to the front of her shirt and simply ripping it apart. Buttons pinged their way across the kitchen, landing on bench tops and the floor, a testimony to Oliver's impatience at finally being able to see Felicity properly.

"Oliver," said Felicity in laughing complaint, "this is your shirt. I'm already bare-foot, pregnant and in the kitchen. I'm not going to be sewing buttons on for you as well."

Oliver couldn't take his eyes off the bounty he'd just revealed. Felicity's breasts were pert and perfect, capping off a creamy expanse of skin which led down to the expanding swell of her midriff. His eyes glazed over at knowing all the beauty belonged to him. "I'm not interested in your sewing skills right now," he said hoarsely.

"Good, because I don't have any."

Oliver bent his head and captured one of those enticing pink nipples in his mouth. It hardened into a peak immediately as his tongue lapped at the bud. Felicity gave a low moan of appreciation at his attentiveness on her tender flesh while Oliver released there was no way this was going to be a slow coupling, despite his best intentions. He just needed her too much right then. Oliver's hands went to his pants, eager to release himself from their confines which had become far too constrictive. His other hand went to Felicity's panties, intent on pulling them down her legs.

Felicity's hands went to his head and she grabbed his hair. "Wait," she said breathlessly, "stop."

Oliver gave a complaining groan around her breast. "Can't," he panted painfully. "I need you too much." Felicity couldn't put a stop to this, not again. He was going to permanently injure himself at this rate. Oliver tore his mouth from her breast and looked down at her with pleading eyes. "Please, God, Felicity," he said achingly, "I need to be inside you right now."

"I want that too," said Felicity eagerly, "but not here. I can't have one of your family members walking in on us again. It's like they all have some kind of radar when it comes to us having sex. They turn up like it's the first day of sales at Barneys."

Right then Oliver didn't care if they were being watched by the entire Super Bowl audience but Felicity didn't seem to share his candor. She unwrapped her legs from around his waist and propped herself up on her elbows, looking up at him through her eyelashes. "Take me to bed, Oliver," she purred. "I want you to do bad, bad things to me."

"I want that too," he said hoarsely. Oliver knew Felicity was waiting for him to move out of the way but that would mean losing contact with her and that seemed an impossibility right then. "God but you're beautiful," he said unevenly, looking down at her. "How did I keep my hands off you for all that time?" Oliver bent over her, kissing her neck, another playful nip at Felicity's other breast, making her gasp. Then Oliver was pressing his lips against her swollen stomach, thrilling at the thought of their child being inside of her, growing every day.

"You made it look easy."

Oliver lifted his head and fixed her with a serious look. "It wasn't."

Felicity sat up and kissed him lightly on the lips. "I'm glad you came to your senses."

"I'm glad you were still there when I did," said Oliver sincerely. "I could have lost you, being so stupid for so long."

Felicity just smiled, slipping from the table and forcing Oliver to take a little step back. "But you didn't and you never will," she said softly. Felicity took her his hand in hers. "Now, take me to bed, Mr. Queen." She looked up at him, expression full of promise. "You know I'm going to make it worth your while."

Oliver swallowed hard and willed himself to calm down, at least until they got up the stairs and into the bedroom. Which, right then, seemed like far too big of a distance to exhibit any kind of control around this seductress standing in front of him, buttonless shirt hanging open and exposing just enough of the succulence underneath for Oliver to know exactly what he was depriving himself of, even for a few more minutes. He mutely let Felicity lead him towards the door of the kitchen but then Felicity turned her head and looked back over her shoulder at him.

"Why don't you grab a bottle of water?"

Oliver obediently went to the fridge and retrieved the water. "Are you thirsty?"

Felicity gave him a seductive smile. "It's for you. I'm about to make you sweat." She bit her bottom lip. "A lot," she promised him before slowly turning around and sauntering from the room, making sure that delicious bottom of hers swung seductively as she did.

Oliver hand unconsciously tightened on the bottle of water he was holding. "Oh God," he said weakly, fresh blood heading south of the border and causing even more discomfort. Suddenly Oliver realized he was just standing there, like a drooling idiot while Felicity walked away. He quickly went to follow her, worried that her short legs weren't going to be able to get them into the bedroom quickly enough and fully prepared to carry her to get there faster. Oliver stepped out of the kitchen into the corridor. "Felicity?" He couldn't immediately see her in the gloom. "Felicity?" Oliver quickened his steps until he was out into the foyer but he still didn't see Felicity. Maybe she was faster than he thought. Oliver took to the stairs, bounding up them. "Felicity?" this time he called her name a little louder, not caring about the sleeping occupants of the house. He kept on running up the stairs but no matter how many steps he took, Oliver didn't ever seem to make it to the top of the staircase. He started to work up a sweat, panic nipping at his heels as the race to find Felicity continued to be fruitless, no matter how fast he ran.

"Felicity!"

Something was wrong, very, very wrong. Oliver had let his guard down and now Felicity was lost. This couldn't be happening. He wasn't going to let this happen.

"Oliver."

Oliver's head snapped up at the sound of Felicity's scared voice saying his name. She was standing above him, on the stairs. "Felicity," he said, relief flooding his entire body.

Felicity looked down at him, her expression becoming stricken. "Oliver," she whispered. A dark stain slowly spreading over the front of her shirt. Felicity's legs gave way and she tumbled forward. Oliver shot up the stairs, intent on catching her and he just managed it, Felicity collapsing into his arms. It was then he saw the end of the knife blade, sticking out of her chest. Oliver gave a gasp of horror, carefully rolling her a little in his arms so he could look at Felicity's back. A long blade knife was stuck up to the hilt between her shoulder blades. Without thinking, Oliver grabbed it, pulling the evil weapon out of Felicity's body. She tensed, gave a little whimper and then all life left her body. "No," said Oliver hoarsely, "no, this is a dream, this isn't happening." His heart was practically tearing its way through his rib cage as he willed this nightmare to end. "Wake up!" he yelled at himself. "Wake up!"

"She's gone. You've lost her."

Oliver looked up the stairs to see a dark figure. He leaned forward a little, catching some of the light and Oliver recognized him as the old man who owned the cabins. The man's face cracked in an evil smile as he held up a hand. "I took her away from you forever."

"No!" screeched Oliver, letting go of Felicity so he could lunge at the other man, wanting to tear him to pieces with his bare hands for what he'd done. The old man seemed to evaporate just as Oliver went to take hold of him but he reappeared behind Oliver and pushed him hard. Oliver was sent flying over the side of the staircase railing and then he was just falling and falling, his screams of anger and despair bouncing off all around him until they joined him in the blackness which swallowed them all whole…

**A/N****: And so the crazy begins in earnest. Apart from the blood soaked ending, I did like to give you a little taste of what potentially a loving Olicity relationship would look like, you know, when we eventually get where we're going. I see them as being very cute and playful… which is not something we're used to seeing with Oliver and what makes it so wonderful that Felicity brings out in him and makes you want to explore. So, whack on the pith helmet (that's a real thing, sounds dirty I know but it's not… unless you drop it in the mud, then it would be I guess), my little ducklings, grab hold of Dr. Livingstone, I presume and let's get exploring! **


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N****: As promised, another day, another update. :D **

**Just a heads up about this chapter – there is no Olicity. I know, I know, it's a cardinal sin for an Olicity fic but it's just this one chapter and it's the last bit of real levity before this stuff gets real! Besides, as we get to the pointy end of Oliver's poisoning, it's going to be more and more just Oliver and Felicity, together and apart, so there is that to look forward to. Okay, have I made enough excuses for this chapter yet? No? Bummer. In that case, I suppose I should get to work making you another body hair stuffed cushion by way of apology… it may take a couple of years to get enough to fill it… just send me your mailing address and keep checking your mail box around 2016-17. **

**Also, as promised/threatened, insight into the second troubling thing which has been occupying precious brain space. And it's all because I saw Stephen Amell answer a question on YT where he answers facebook questions. The question was, would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses? First of all, awesome question. Second of all, Captain Amell chose the horse-sized duck scenario because he thought 100 duck-sized horses would be like death by a thousand cuts. Now, I get where he is coming from with that, I really do but ever since he said it, I've had real concerns that if such a scenario ever presented itself to him, Captain Amell is going to go with the horse-sized duck without really knowing what he is getting himself into. Clearly he doesn't know a lot about ducks. The two most pressing things to understand about them is firstly, they have this terrifying, corkscrew penis situation going on which is about as long as they are and they drag it along the ground behind them when they're in the mood for love. It ain't pretty. Second, all male ducks (drakes) are rapists. That's why female ducks have counter corkscrew vaginas to make it so hard for the boy ducks to get their act together and don't have to put up with constant… well, I'll leave it there, but you get the picture. **

**Now, imagine all that… but as the size of a horse. **

**I know, terrifying, right? **

**The 100 duck-sized horses are clearly the way to go, because one, how adorable would that be? And two, horses can't climb. You stand on a chair and it's game over for those pint-sized little cuties. Now, consider your other option. You just know that horse-sized rapey little bastard is going to use that corkscrew penis of his in some capacity to gain the upper hand and I'm sorry, I don't see any kind of happy ending there… well, maybe for the duck, but for Captain Amell, not so much. Also, ducks can fly. Do you really want something with what would be roughly an eight foot penis flying around? You could seriously take someone's eye out with that thing. It's the main reason whales and elephants don't fly. It's just not safe. It's a workplace health and safety issue. **

**So yeah, these things worry me. I feel like someone should warn him to rethink his strategy on that one. There could be dire consequences for making the wrong call and I just feel like an encounter with a horse-sized duck is not something Captain Amell is emotionally or psychologically prepared for. **

**But I digress… regress… egress… largesse… I don't know, one of those things… pick one that tickles your fancy. **

**And now, without further ado… Apu… canoe… bamboo… okay, this is getting out of hand but man, rhyming is oddly addictive… predictive… restrictive… vindictive… oh great, now I'm developing some kind of weird, Dr. Seuss-esque Tourette's Syndrome. Like the excessive back hair and glass eye aren't enough of a conversation starter when I meet people… steeple… umm… damn… feeble… okay, that last one was more rhyme adjacent. Not many things rhyme with people which is weird because it feels like a lot of words would, only they don't. **

**Alright, so, if I haven't melted your brain with all of the above, have a crack at the chapter and if your brain has melted… well, again, sucks to be you, I guess… mess… bless… stress… regress… excess… **

**CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE**

The guards surged out of the stairwell door, twenty at least, some of them still with red, tear-filled eyes. "You lot," ordered one of the men sharply, pointing down one end of the corridor, "this way. Check every door and closet. The rest of you with me, doing the same." From his vantage point, which was on the ceiling, propping himself up between a light fixture and a wall, Roy watched the men split into two groups, running down the corridor and doing as they were instructed. He waited until they were as far away as possible, which wasn't as far as he'd like before letting himself drop to the ground, agilely landing on his bare feet. Roy yanked open the door and made a dash for the stairs.

"Roy!"

"I'm coming!" hissed back Roy. "Just have your big plan ready to go when I get there."

"Don't worry about me. I know what I'm doing."

Roy had reached the first landing when he heard the door above him slam open. His head jerked up to see the guards running into the staircase. "Damn it!"

"What's wrong?"

"Mickey Mouse and his crew saw me double back," growled Roy. "I'll be turning up with company."

"Just turn up," Diggle ordered him. "I'll handle the rest."

Roy bounded down the stairs and was at the door to the eighth floor. He pulled it open and ran through. "I'm here!"

"Run towards the window and don't stop, no matter what happens!"

Roy quickly looked both ways, spotting the end of the corridor with the floor to ceiling window. He immediately turned towards it and ran as fast as he could. Halfway there, the first of the guards were running out into the corridor after him. That window was getting closer and Roy still didn't know what Diggle's escape plan was. "Just a heads up," he yelled over the shouting of the men behind him, "if you think I can fly… I can't." A bullet whizzed by his ear and he flinched. "Also not bullet proof! You writing this stuff down?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely. Incoming. Watch your nine."

"What's incoming?" fretted Roy. "More information." Suddenly a harpoon shattered the glass of the window Roy was almost at. It whizzed past his right shoulder, the metal line attached to it snaking behind it at a blurring speed before the harpoon embedded itself in a wall.

"All aboard the Diggle Express!" Diggle shouted.

More bullets shot past Roy from behind as he grabbed for his small cross bow, throwing it over the line and launching himself out of the window. "I'm a sitting duck!" yelled Roy as he glanced back over his shoulder while he zip-lined between the buildings, to see at least eight men collecting at the window, all with guns aimed at them.

"No, you're not," said Diggle firmly, "they are."

Suddenly the men began to drop with ruthless efficiency as Diggle expertly picked them off one by one in rapid succession. Roy sailed over the street eight stories below heading towards the rooftop of the adjacent building at increasing speed. As he got closer Roy could see Diggle propped up against the ledge of the roof, a sniper rifle positioned towards Titan Towers. Roy hit the roof top hard and rolled forwards a couple of times.

"Messy," said Diggle disapprovingly, as he jumped up and grabbed the black bag which had various pieces of weaponry in it, "very messy."

"Okay, it had a few rough edges," said Roy, joining Diggle as they quickly decamped from the roof. "But I got what we were after."

"Let's hope so," said Diggle grimly as they ran down the stairs, "because I don't see us getting a second go round at getting into that building."

Roy couldn't argue with that. He was still amazed he was actually still alive. They continued down the stairs until they were on the ground floor and then they launched themselves into the car and took off at high speed.

Roy twisted around in his seat to look out the back window. "I don't see anyone following us." Just then a bullet burst through the back window, shattering it and both men flinched away.

"Thanks for the update," said Diggle in exasperation. "You've got a real handle on the situation."

Roy could now see a black sedan behind them and a man hanging out the window, shooting at them. "Okay, we're being followed."

"Hold on," said Diggle calmly, "this may get a little bumpy."

Ten stomach churning minutes later Diggle had lost the guys in the car. Roy couldn't help but be impressed by the other man's skill behind the wheel. Diggle really knew how to drive. "Where are we going? Back to the Foundry?"

"No," said Diggle simply, changing lanes.

"Then where are we going?"

"To finish this."

"You're not big on the sharing info thing, are you?"

"Just follow my lead when we get there." Diggle shot him a quick look. "And you may want to take that wig off."

Roy had actually forgotten he was still wearing the thing. He hastily ripped the wig from his head, tossing it over into the backseat.

"And the dress is a bit distracting too," commented Diggle.

"I was getting to that," grumbled Roy as he started to wrestle his way out of the thing. "I was just waiting for the hail of bullets to slow down." Twenty minutes later Roy was sans female clothing and stepping out of a hotel elevator with Diggle. "Why are we here? Are we meeting someone?"

"Yes and we've all got something to bring to this meeting," said Diggle. "I want you to bring silence."

Roy scowled up at him. "You're oppressing me."

"Thank God you noticed, I was beginning to think I'd have to hire a sky writer."

Roy rolled his eyes. "Still not funny," he muttered as they rounded the corner to see two burly men standing by a hotel door.

Diggle gave them a cool look. "He'll want to see me."

The two men exchanged glances and then one of them simply opened the door, letting Roy and Diggle pass through.

A well-groomed, tanned man who looked to be in his early fifties stood up from where he'd been sitting on the sofa, a snifter of brandy in his hand and dressed in one of the hotel's toweling bath robes grinned to see him. "You're alive!" he exclaimed happily, "how utterly marvelous."

"I need to speak to you alone," said Diggle, casting a glance at the array of bodyguards in the room.

"Of course, of course, we'll retire to my boudoir." The older man gave him a flirty look. "You know the way." He turned and headed towards the bedroom and Diggle inclined his head at Roy, indicating he should follow them.

"Why do you know the way to this guy's bedroom?" asked Roy with interest, looking around the expensive suite as they walked.

Diggle didn't answer, just closed the door behind Roy when they were all inside. He turned and addressed the older man. "I've brought you a present, Mr. Forbes-Hamilton."

The man's gaze went past to Diggle to Roy, his face lighting up. "Oh, he's just what I've always wanted," Forbes-Hamilton said, clapping his hands together in delight. "I'll treasure him always."

Roy scowled, taken aback. "Is he talking about me?"

"So pretty," cooed Forbes-Hamilton looking Roy over admiringly. "Does all that pretty have a name?"

"Roy," volunteered Diggle.

"Hey, what's going on here?" protested Roy. He glared at Forbes-Hamilton. "Look, dude, I don't know what you're thinking but I'm not like some rent boy. I don't get paid for sex," he said indignantly. "When I have sex, I give it away for free!" Roy paused. "That sounded a lot nobler in my head," he muttered.

"I find that hard to believe," said Diggle wryly and then addressed the other man in the room. "Roy isn't your present, Mr. Forbes-Hamilton," said Diggle easily. "I have a former business associate of yours in my trunk."

"Dead?" asked Forbes-Hamilton hopefully. "And call me Bunny."

"I won't be doing that," said Diggle calmly. "And yes, she's dead."

"Wait, we drove over here with a dead woman in the trunk of our car?" asked Roy in disbelief. "You didn't think that was worth mentioning?"

"What was I suppose to do with her?"

"I don't know, leave her where she fell?"

"We didn't have time to clean the body properly. I didn't want to leave any DNA evidence." Diggle turned his head back to Forbes-Hamilton. "I'm assuming you have people who take care of such things?"

"I have a little man, Mr. Leo, he's very good," agreed Forbes-Hamilton. "I'll take care of it."

"Thank you," said Diggle. "Normally I'd deal with these things myself, but I'm kind of on a time clock here."

"You got what you needed?" asked Forbes-Hamilton with admiration. "Aren't you the resourceful one?"

"_I_ got what we needed," Roy corrected him flatly.

The older man smiled at him. "Pretty and ingenious," he said huskily. "Who's the full package then?" Forbes-Hamilton's gaze drifted to Roy's crotch area. "And then some," he murmured appreciatively.

"Hey, pal," snapped Roy, "my eyes are up here, got it?"

Roy saw Diggle turn his head a little to hide the smile at his responses to Forbes-Hamilton's flirting.

"So feisty," said Forbes-Hamilton approvingly. "I do love it when my kitties like to scratch."

"Monkeys, cats," grumbled Roy. "What is it about me and animals all of a sudden?" He glared at the other man. "I'm a man, okay? Not some fluffy pet."

"Of course you are, kitten," purred Forbes-Hamilton. "I mean, you got in and out of Titan Tower in one delectable piece." He nodded approvingly. "So, my man helped you out then?"

"That was your guy on the inside?" asked Roy uncertainly.

"Yes."

"Oh." Roy grimaced. "Were you close? Because I may have some bad news for you about that."

Forbes-Hamilton looked at Diggle.

"Dead," said Diggle without any more preamble.

"Oh," said Forbes-Hamilton, looking a little surprised. "Oh well, at least he got you in, Frank didn't die in vain."

"Actually, he kind of did," said Roy a little uncomfortably. "There was a broom-related incident while I was initially trying to get in."

"Well, of course, we've all had those," said Forbes-Hamilton, looking a little confused. "So, how did you get in then?"

Roy blinked. "I don't want to talk about it." He gave a sharp look at Diggle. "And you don't want to talk about it either," he said forcefully.

"Don't worry," said Diggle dryly, "I'm working on repressing most of today as it is."

"Well, you got the antidote formula, so I suppose that is all that matters." Forbes-Hamilton smiled at them both. "Is it too much to hope that you're here to thank me for all my help? And before you answer that, I just want to let you know I'm completely naked under my clothes." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at them.

"Everyone is naked under their clothes," pointed out Roy in exasperation.

Forbes-Hamilton fluttered his eyelashes at Roy. "Oh kitten, you little tease."

"Hey, back off, buddy, I've got a girlfriend," said Roy quickly.

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"And yet you're here, in my bedroom," said Forbes-Hamilton coyly. "Interesting."

"We're on a break," said Roy defensively. "And I'm helping out a friend."

"Why?"

Roy sent a dark look Diggle's way. "I've pretty much been asking myself that question the entire time for all the thanks I've gotten."

"I'm not thanking you for being a pain in my ass all day," said Diggle unapologetically.

"I meant why are you and your girlfriend on a break?" asked Forbes-Hamilton curiously.

"She says I know why."

Forbes-Hamilton arched an eyebrow. "And do you?"

"Not even a little bit," admitted Roy and then he shook his head, annoyed with himself for the overshare. "Okay, we're not talking about Thea."

"Thea?" repeated Forbes-Hamilton with interest. "The Greek goddess of light and mother of the sun, moon and dawn. She must be quite the handful. Goddess's usually are. You should really know why Thea's mad at you, kitten," tutted Forbes-Hamilton. "It's important to listen when a woman talks. Being a good listener makes all the difference."

"Aren't you into guys?" asked Roy in annoyance. "What do you know about women?"

"Decidedly more than you, I suspect, my darling," said an amused Forbes-Hamilton. "It's amazing how much clarity you have about something when you're not constantly picturing that something naked." He trailed off, eyes glazing over as his gaze lingered on Roy again.

Roy snapped his fingers. "Hey, hey, cut that out!"

Forbes-Hamilton blinked rapidly a few times. "Sorry, kitten, lost my train of thought there for a moment."

Diggle stepped in. "Let me help you out with that, Mr. Forbes-Hamilton—"

"Bunny."

"No," said Diggle, not missing a beat. "We have the antidote to the XR-320—"

"I knew that bitch was holding out on me," said Forbes-Hamilton in vague annoyance and then smiled at Diggle. "But good for you, honey. I knew you could do it."

"Again, it was _me_ who did the doing," grumbled Roy.

"And I need a chemist to make it for me," continued on Diggle, ignoring them both. He looked at Forbes-Hamilton. "Can you help me?"

"I don't know," said Forbes-Hamilton sweetly, "can you call me Bunny?"

"No," said Diggle without hesitation, "but he will." Diggle inclined his head towards Roy.

"Oh my God," said Roy in outrage, "I really am your butt monkey, aren't I? I'm not calling him Bunny! You've been taking advantage of me all day—"

"Ohh, lucky boy," said Forbes-Hamilton excitedly.

"And I'm sick of it," snapped Roy. "You shove me in dark ducting—"

"Never heard it called that before," said Forbes-Hamilton with interest.

"You dress me in women's clothing—"

"Definitely heard that before," said the older man knowingly.

"You nearly harpoon me while I'm being chased down by a group of men who were heavily packing—"

Forbes-Hamilton's expression was of definite intrigue. "Promise me you'll call me on your next boy's day out. This sounds right up my alley."

"Shut up, Bunny!" snapped Roy, frustrated that no one seemed to be taking him seriously right then.

"He called you Bunny," said Diggle smoothly. "Can we move on now? I really need a chemist and fast."

Roy threw up his hands in disgust. "Why isn't anyone listening to me?"

"I'm listening, kitten," said Forbes-Hamilton sympathetically. "There is no need to get all upset. Come and give your Aunty Bunny a hug." He moved towards Roy, arms outstretched.

Roy took a hasty step back. "Stop sexually objectifying me," he said in annoyance. "I'm straight. It's not going to happen!"

"Oh honey, if I had a dollar for every straight man I've slept with, I could afford a Rolex." Forbes-Hamilton lifted his arm and made a show of feigned surprise at the watch he was sporting. "Oh look, a Rolex, what do you know."

"Yeah, well, I'm not up for grabs," said Roy sourly. "I just want some appreciation."

"Which I am more than willing to give," said Forbes-Hamilton huskily.

"Not from you, from the no-neck circus freak over here," said Roy, glowering at Diggle.

Diggle rolled his eyes. "Alright, fine, you complete me, how's that?"

"Overly sarcastic sounding," grunted Roy.

"Oh good, you caught that, did you? I was worried I was being too subtle."

"Boys, boys, no fighting," tutted Forbes-Hamilton. He paused and gave them an impish look. "Unless you want to do it shirtless and oiled up and in that case, I am all for it. Let me just go get my camera." He went to grab his phone from the bedside table but Diggle grabbed his arm.

"Bunny," said Diggle with quiet authority.

"Be still my beating heart," said Forbes-Hamilton unevenly, looking all flustered.

"What I need you to get is your chemist," said Diggle, looking very serious now. "We have two friends who are in a lot of danger and this antidote is their only hope."

"Oh, you're going to be such a problem for me, I can tell," groaned Forbes-Hamilton. "I just can't seem to say no to you. I have the same problem with cheese cake even though I know it'll go straight to my thighs." He sent Diggle a hopeful look. "I don't suppose there is any chance you'll be doing the same at some point?"

"You suppose correctly," said Diggle evenly, "but if you do this for me, I will owe you a favor."

"Oh, color me intrigued," said Forbes-Hamilton breathlessly. "Such possibilities."

"A favor which I reserve the right to veto at the time of redemption," continued on Diggle smoothly. "Until you find a Diggle-sanctioned favor to ask."

"Your name is Diggle?"

"Yes."

"Oh God, I love you and want to have your babies," said Forbes-Hamilton emotionally. "Diggle is the best name ever. It rhymes with all the things I love doing... giggle… wiggle…" He gave Diggle a suggestive look. "Jiggle." Forbes-Hamilton got a faraway look in his eyes. "Diggle and Bunny. Doesn't that just sound right to you?"

"You're thinking about those names on monogrammed towels, aren't you?" asked Diggle dryly.

"A little bit, yes."

"Well, stop it."

Forbes-Hamilton pouted. "Party pooper." He looked over his shoulder at Roy. "Can you at least leave me my little Roy toy as a show of good will?"

"No, he can't," huffed Roy.

"I can help you with your girl problems," Forbes-Hamilton enticed him.

"Roy is still on the clock," said Diggle. "Sorry, can't spare him."

Forbes-Hamilton looked very disappointed. "Oh well," he sighed, "maybe next time then."

"There isn't going to be a next time," said Roy determinedly.

Forbes-Hamilton just gave him a knowing little smile. "We'll see."

"The chemist," Diggle reminded him. "We need a name and address. Like I said, it's urgent."

"I'll make a call," said Forbes-Hamilton easily. "Floyd will be expecting you that way."

"Tonight," Diggle pushed him. "We don't have any time to spare with this thing."

"Fine, tonight," said Forbes-Hamilton agreeably. "Your boy isn't doing too well, is he?"

"He's going to be fine," said Diggle grimly.

"I hope so, honey," said Forbes-Hamilton sympathetically. "I'm a sucker for a happy ending." He shot a sly look over at Roy. "And you can take that any way you want." His smile became decidedly cheeky. "I often do."

"Stop sexually harassing me," said Roy impatiently.

"Stop being so adorably irresistible," countered Forbes-Hamilton teasingly.

"Stop it both of you," said Diggle. He fixed the older man with a determined look. "Chemist."

Forbes-Hamilton inclined his head. "Chemist," he agreed reluctantly, "but I want you both to promise that you'll visit me again and tell me how all of this ends up working out." He smiled. "I really want my happy ending."

Diggle's jaw hardened. "So do I," he said quietly. "So do I."

Roy could hear the uncertainty in the other man's voice and was a little taken aback. Diggle was actually worried which made Roy worry. Maybe this whole thing was more serious than he'd first thought. He grimaced. This day really just kept getting worse.

**A/N****: And lastly, but not leastly (hmm… odd how last gets to have an ly but least doesn't. English is such a weird language)… just want to give a special shout out to all my guest reviewers who I can't reply to and thank them for their support. I mean, I totally get the not logging on thing and let's be honest, not giving me access to your email accounts is probably a smart move on your behalf. ;) I get into those things and run amok… canuck… black duck… quick fu… you know, maybe I'd better stop there. But, I do want to let you know I appreciate your lovely reviews and would respond if I could. :D Group cuddle, guys! Wow… some of you are really handsie… hey, I didn't say to stop. **

**More weirdness guaranteed in the next chapter and that's just in the A/N's… can't remember off the top of my head about the chapter. So, stay tuned if you like to walk on the wild side, chortle hysterically at danger, bitch slap the face of death… or you know, are waiting for your socks to finish drying in the dryer. Whatevs. :D **


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N****: Howdy, y'all. Not going to linger over the intro tonight because I've been writing all day and I'm a little pooped. Unfortunately for this story, I haven't been writing it. I've been finishing off my Captain America fic – 'The Date' because I have neglected it horribly since starting up on Arrow. I left them in the middle of a cliffhanger for months and everything. *hangs her fanfic writing head in shame* Anyways, I'm trying to be a good girl and finish off that fic before I continue on with this one. So, there might be a slight delay in the next chapter. Depends how I go wrapping up the Date. It shouldn't be anything to get too worried about. :D **

**And with that, I'll let you jump into this chapter where things are going on a decided downwards spiral. We're getting to the pointy end of Oliver's poisoning saga and it's not good. Not many laughs to be had for the next little while, so strap on those big girl panties and dive in…**

**CHAPTER TWENTY SIX**

Oliver woke with a start, muscles tensing. His nightmare was still fresh in his head and his hand reached out instinctively for Felicity. The bed beside him was empty but still warm. Oliver lifted his head from the pillow and looked around their bedroom at the mansion. "Felicity?" Early morning light was filtering through the windows as Oliver swung his feet over the side of the bed and stood up. He immediately started to look for her, the horrors of his dream still lingering. Walking out into the corridor, Oliver headed down the hall to the next room. Inside he found Felicity standing in the middle of a gorgeously decorated baby room. The walls were in soft greens and every possible baby related need was addressed from an intricate cot, changing table, play area, book case, toy boxes. It was all there. Felicity was just standing there, her back to him, taking it all in. "Hey," said Oliver huskily.

She immediately turned around and smiled. "Hey yourself."

Oliver's gaze lingered over the adorable sight she made, hair still messed from the pillow, comfortable pajama bottoms and white t-shirt that had given up on trying to cover the bulge of her nine month pregnant belly. Felicity's baby bump was fully exposed, her hands loosely cupping it. Oliver walked up to her. "Good morning." He treated himself to a lingering kiss and then bent over her belly. "And good morning to you too, little one." Oliver kissed the taunt skin of Felicity's belly which looked about to pop. "Did you wake your mom up early again?"

"It wasn't her, I couldn't sleep. My brain wouldn't turn off."

Oliver straightened up, frowning a little. "Is something wrong?"

"This room is amazing." She looked around herself. "Your mom did a phenomenal job."

Oliver nodded. "That's my mom."

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Do you think she'd be really upset if the baby didn't sleep in here?"

Oliver looked at her in surprise.

"It's just that the room is so big and Bump is so small." Felicity put her hands protectively on her belly. "And she's always slept with us up until now. I don't know if I can stand her being all alone in this room, away from us. I mean, what if she can't fall asleep without the sound of you snoring beside her?"

"I don't snore," protested Oliver.

"You snore," said Felicity. "Mainly when you're on your back and really tired. What if Bump needs the sound of someone operating a chain saw next to her to fall asleep?"

"Okay, I'm pretty sure that if I do, on the odd occasion, snore, it isn't at chain saw volume."

Felicity's lips twitched. "It's like you're the one felling all the rain forests in Brazil. It's pretty loud."

"I remain skeptical about the snoring issue," said Oliver and then wrapped his arms around her expanded waist, still just managing to get his arms all the way around. He gave her an indulgent smile. "But if you want Bump to sleep with us after she's born, then I have no problem with that and my mom won't either."

"I'm probably just being overly hormonal," said Felicity unevenly. "I just want her close. She's been inside me all of these months and I can't bear the thought of her being too far away." Felicity grimaced. "I'm going to one of those neurotic moms, aren't I?"

"You're going to be an amazing mother," Oliver corrected her quickly. "And I am going to take the best care of both of you, I promise."

"We know you will," said Felicity, smiling up at him lovingly.

Oliver bent his head to kiss her but caught the flash of movement in the mirror which hung on the wall in front of him. He quickly twisted around, looking at the doorway.

"What's wrong?"

"I saw something." Oliver looked back at Felicity, lowering his voice. "Stay here."

Felicity frowned but did as he asked as Oliver turned back around and went to the door of the nursery. He looked out along the corridor, checking both directions and saw another a shadow disappear around a corner. Oliver's muscles coiled as he immediately went to see who was wandering around the corridors at this time of the morning. He hurried to follow after the person and as he reached the corner and looked around it, there was no one there. Oliver scowled, not knowing where they could have gone. Suddenly there was a loud thump from back up the hallway. He immediately turned around and ran back the way he came, bursting into the nursery. "Felicity!" She was gone but in the middle of the room, where he'd left her there was a large puddle of blood. Oliver's stomach clenched into a painful ball and he felt like he was going to be sick. His panicked gaze saw there were bloody drag marks coming from the original pool of blood and they led off to a side door Oliver didn't remember seeing before. He immediately followed the blood trail as the door opened out into another corridor. The drag marks continued all the way up into the dimly corridor and Oliver ran, desperate to find Felicity. He didn't want the blood to be hers but he knew in his heart of hearts it was. The corridor seemed endless as he ran, heart in mouth, desperate to find Felicity. Suddenly up ahead he could see something on the ground and as Oliver got closer he could see it was the crumpled body of Felicity. "No!" he cried out, running even faster. Oliver dropped to his knees beside her body, twisted at an unnatural angle, blue eyes looking sightlessly up at him. Felicity's throat was cut, blood staining her blonde hair and face. He was kneeling in a lake of Felicity's blood, could feel it seeping through the material of his pants even as he hauled her could body into his arms. Oliver could hear hysterical moaning in the distance as he frantically rocked Felicity in his arms, willing her to come back to him, not even registering it was him. He just needed her to come back to him, to stop being so cold and lifeless in his arms. Oliver felt his world ending, the horror swallowing him whole…

#

Felicity was dreaming that she was being wrapped up tightly in a giant tortilla. She jerked awake, her body forcing her to wake up when she couldn't catch her breath. It took her a groggy, sleep-filled moment to realize the reason she was finding breathing so hard was because Oliver had a death grip on her in his sleep. He was shaking and groaning, his arms wrapped tightly around her as he obviously had a bad dream. Felicity managed to get one of her hands up to push on his chest. "Oliver, wake up." She could feel his heart racing so fast against the palm of her hand, it was like he was sprinting. "Oliver," Felicity grunted, trying to break free of his hold, "let go of me, I can't breathe." His only response was to emit a low groan and tighten his hold on her. Felicity gave a little squeak as his hard chest was ground up against hers, making it almost impossible to catch her next breath. She began to panic and wiggled violently in Oliver's arm and even as she did, he still didn't wake up. There was no way she could break free of Oliver's hold on her, he was just too much stronger than her but Felicity had one thing going for her and that was Oliver was back to sweating like a crazy man. The sweat made his skin slick and Felicity managed to slip her way out of his hold just as her vision started to go spotty. She rolled away from Oliver, sucking in a couple of lung worth of air to catch her breath again.

"Felicity," moaned Oliver in despair, curling up into a ball as he obviously felt the loss of contact with her, even though he was still asleep.

Felicity kneeled beside him in the bed and roughly shook his shoulder as he lay on his side. "Wake up!" she ordered him loudly. "Oliver, you need to wake up now!" But he didn't, just continued with the groaning punctuated by the odd whimper, rolled up into a shaking, sweating ball. This was not good. Felicity leapt from the bed and fumbled for her glasses as she turned on the light. She raced to the bathroom and soaked a towel in water and then hurried back to Oliver. Wiping down as much of his skin as she could with the wet towel, Felicity then grabbed one of the magazines she'd brought with her and started to frantically fan Oliver in an attempt to cool him down. "Don't panic," she mumbled to herself. "Don't panic." Still fanning Oliver, Felicity hurried around to her side of the bed again and grabbed her phone. She hastily dialed with her free hand. As soon as the phone was answered on the other end Felicity practically shouted into the phone. "Aardvark, aardvark!"

"Felicity?" said a surprised Diggle and then his tone became more urgent. "Are you alright? What's happening?"

"I can't wake Oliver up," she said loudly, panic making her raise her voice. "He's having some kind of bad dream and sweating like crazy and I can't wake him up."

"Are you okay?"

Felicity took a deep breath, realizing she must sound a little hysterical. "Yes, yes, I'm fine, I'm sorry. I just woke up with a fright and then I couldn't wake up Oliver and I freaked a little." She looked down at the still shaking Oliver. "He's so much worse, Diggle. We don't have the kind of time we thought we'd have with this toxin. Please, please tell me you've got the antidote."

"It's being made as we speak," said Diggle reassuringly.

Felicity's shoulders sagged. "Oh, thank God."

"But it's going to take at least six hours to manufacture."

Felicity tensed again. "Digg, I don't know if Oliver has that long," she said hoarsely. "His whole system is in overdrive and I don't seem to be able to calm him down anymore."

"Sit tight, I'm on my way," said Diggle grimly. "If he's as bad as you say we have to bring Oliver back into the city, closer to proper medical attention."

"It's not good," fretted Felicity.

"I'll be there as fast as I can," said Diggle quickly. "You've got this, Felicity. Just stay calm and do what you can for him."

"Okay," said Felicity unsteadily. "Please hurry."

"I'm already on my way."

Felicity hung up and threw her phone down. She looked down at the still moaning Oliver, completely soaked in sweat now. It was like she was standing next to a blast furnace with the amount of heat he was giving off. "Okay, Felicity, think, you have to do something." She knew there was no chance of getting Oliver into the bathtub again. There was nothing for it, she'd have to improvise. Felicity desperately looked around the room and saw there was a determined drip of water coming from the ceiling. Obviously there was some kind of hole in the roof and the heavy rain outside was getting in. She had an idea. Felicity ran into the kitchen area, pulling open the doors of the tiny cupboard there and found a broom. She grabbed it and ran back to where the roof was leaking. Pulling a chair over to the spot, Felicity stood on it and started to pound the broom end up against the wood of the ceiling. The wood was old and rotted and already wet, so it gave way quite easily to her assault with the broom end. A surge of rain water hit her full in the face as she broke through the roof and she spluttered, shaking her head. Felicity jumped down from the chair, discarding the broom and looked at her handiwork. The rustic cabin now had an added feature of an indoor waterfall as the heavy rain from outside now found its way into the cabin, cascading down and soaking everything in its path. "We are so not getting our deposit back," muttered Felicity but right then, she didn't care.

Felicity ran over to the bed were Oliver was still curled up into the fetal position and took the edge of the sheet. "I'm sorry," she apologized hastily. "This might sting a little." With a strength fueled by adrenalin, Felicity pulled on the bottom sheet of the bed, sliding it from the mattress and Oliver along with it. He hit the ground with a thud and Felicity winced but Oliver didn't wake up, still caught in his nightmares. Digging in her heels, Felicity dragged Oliver on the sheet over to where the cascade of water was flowing freely from the roof, so he was lying directly in its way. He bucked up at the cold water hitting his heated skin and struggled to get away, still in his dream state. Felicity immediately dropped down beside him, pulling Oliver up into her arms so that she was cradling him and making sure the water hit him directly on the chest and stomach. "I've got you," she reassured him hastily. "It's okay, Oliver, I'm here, I'm here. I'm not going to leave you." Felicity hugged his upper body to her chest, rocking him back and forth, trying to sooth him. "I've got you, nothing bad is going to happen. You're safe, Oliver, just try and breathe," she babbled at him, hoping that wherever Oliver was, he could hear her voice and come back to her. Felicity held her to herself tightly, not caring that she was being soaked along with him. "Just don't leave me, Oliver," she pleaded with him fearfully. "Please don't leave me. I promised I'd stay with you, now you have to do the same." Felicity pressed her cheek against Oliver's as his head lolled back against her cheek. She squeezed her eyes close. "Please stay with me," Felicity whispered hoarsely, "please." There was nothing else Felicity could do now but wait and pray that Diggle made it to them in time. She hugged Oliver to her body and willed Diggle to hurry…

**A/N****: Will Riggle make it in time or will the next chapter see us prepping for a funeral? Dun dun daaahhhh! Anything is possible so I guess you'd best tune in to find out. ;) **


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N****: Okay, making this fast again because I'm juggling two fics ATM. All I need is a kitten and a chainsaw to add to the act and it's next stop Vegas, baby! **

**It's funny posting such a drama packed chapter when I'm currently writing such emotional, angsty ones up ahead. Kind of does my head in a little bit when it comes to shifting gears to talk about this chapter. So, today, I will put the brain monkey in neutral (shut up, Hank, this is happening, put down the spork and get over it!) and just let you read the chapter in peace. Deep breath… here we go…!**

**CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN**

"You are driving really fast," commented Roy as he watched the scenery whiz by. "And I mean _really_ fast."

Ever since Diggle had gotten that frantic phone call from Felicity he'd known there was no time to spare. The trip out to the hunting cabins which usually took an hour and a half was taking Diggle closer to forty minutes. He kept his eyes on the road, concentrating of driving in the heavy rain.

"Just what did Felicity say to you exactly that has turned you into Speed Racer?"

"Oliver's not doing so well," said Diggle shortly.

"Come on, Diggle, this is Oliver we're talking about. The guy is hard core all the way. Even when he's on your side he's a bad ass." Roy pulled a face. "I've still got that arrow hole in my leg which he gave me because he was looking to protect me. People who shoot other people with arrows as an act of friendship can handle their own shit. I don't really think it's as bad as Felicity obviously made it sound."

Diggle's jaw hardened. He knew Roy had a little hero worship going on when it came to Oliver which worried him. There was no real way of knowing what they were going to be walking into with Oliver's state of mind. The video of the test subject tearing those people to pieces was still very fresh in his memory. He didn't want Roy to unintentionally put himself in danger by underestimating the threat Oliver potentially posed them all. "You need to be ready for anything," said Diggle grimly. "Oliver is not himself these days."

"You mean like I was with the mirakuru?"

"Without the super strength but a lot more of the crazy."

Roy frowned. "Okay."

"Felicity is going to be his trigger point," Diggle cautioned the younger man. "Don't get too close to her."

"What does that mean? How close is too close?"

"Oliver will let you know," said Diggle flatly.

"Are you ever going to tell me what is really going on with this whole thing?"

"I've already told you."

"You were pretty skimpy on the details." Roy gave him an annoyed look. "You know, I'm a fully-fledged member of this team and I don't appreciate being kept in the dark about things. I've been shot at, taken a blow to the testicles that would have felled an elephant, cross dressed and been sexually harassed by a British guy called Bunny, all to help you out. Just what else do I have to do to earn prove that I'm all in with Team Arrow?"

Diggle grimaced. "Okay," he relented, "you have a point."

Roy blinked. "I do?"

Diggle shot him a quick glance. "Didn't you want to have a point?"

"I did, I just wasn't expecting you to admit I was right."

"I didn't say you were right. I said you had a point."

"That feels like the same thing to me."

"It's not."

Roy rolled his eyes. "Fine, whatever. So, is it really that bad with Oliver? I mean, really?"

Diggle hesitated and then jerked his head towards the back seat. "You see that bag back there?"

Roy twisted around in his seat. "Yeah."

"There are a couple of tranquilizer guns in there. We may have to use them."

"On Oliver?"

"Yes." Diggle's expression darkened. "It's not ideal because his system is already so messed up with the toxins from the XR-320 but it may be our only hope to stop him if he goes on a rampage and we want to have a chance of saving his life." He sent Roy another quick look. "We don't know what we'll be walking into when we get to the cabin. You have to be prepared for anything."

"After the day and night I've had so far, I'm going to say that isn't going to be a problem," said Roy wryly.

"I mean it, Roy," said Diggle sternly. "If things go south, I want you to protect Felicity, no matter what. I'll handle Oliver."

"You don't really think Oliver would hurt Felicity, do you?" asked Roy a little uncertainly.

"The real Oliver, no," said Diggle grimly, "but that gas is doing a real number on him and trust me, I've seen where that stuff can take a man and it's not pretty."

"I'm still not really understanding the original intention of this gas," said Roy with a frown. "What's the point of making a gas which makes a guy go crazy over a girl? How is that a useful military weapon?"

Diggle gave a short shake of his head. "That's now what the XR-320 was originally designed for. It's a mind control system. It makes the people exposed to it focus on one person to the exclusion of all others so that person has unquestioning control over that soldier. It's meant to make them more ruthless and efficient soldiers who will always return to their alphas, to their handlers." Diggle pulled a face. "The problem we're facing down is that Oliver got a huge, uncontrolled dose of the stuff and the person he's ended up bonded to is the one person he already had very intense feelings about. That throws a whole new spanner in the works. All the testing being done so far, there was no romantic attachments whatsoever, so that was never factored into the effects of the XR-320. Human emotions are incredibly powerful without any kind of enhancing drug. What Oliver has always felt for Felicity is being amplified to a level that he can't contain or control." Diggle's hands tightened on the wheel. "And that means he's a danger to himself and everyone around him, most particularly Felicity."

"If that's the case, why did you send Oliver and Felicity off together?" asked Roy in consternation.

"Because we didn't realize he'd deteriorate this quickly," said Diggle unhappily. "We thought we had a little more time up our sleeves but it seems like we don't. Oliver is in a bad way. Felicity says she can't wake him up."

"So, he's unconscious… how dangerous is an unconscious man going to be?"

Diggle really hoped they weren't going to find out the answer to that question.

#

Oliver broke the surface of the water, blinking the water out of his eyes. He looked around himself, realizing he was trending water in the heated pool at his mansion. It was dark outside, a storm flashing lightning and thunder on the other side of the large glass wall which led out into the gardens. The rain wouldn't be far away. Oliver swam to the side of the pool and put a hand up to the side to hold himself above the water. He looked around the dimly lit pool area, not seeing anyone else there. Suddenly a figure appeared under the water, swimming towards him and popping up gracefully beside him in the water.

Felicity smiled up at him, treading water in front of him. "Hi there you."

Oliver felt a huge sense of relief at seeing her. "Felicity," he said emotionally, "I was looking for you."

"You were?" she asked innocently, wet hair slicked back, darkened to a deeper blonde by the water.

Oliver couldn't take his eyes off her. "I'm always looking for you," he muttered unevenly, suddenly remembering all the times she was taken away from him.

"Well, now you've found me," she said easily.

Oliver continued to stare at her, concerned that if he even so much as blinked, she might disappear. "Am I dreaming you?" he asked hoarsely.

Felicity swam closer, wrapping her arms around his neck, stroking the back of his head. "Maybe I'm dreaming you," countered Felicity huskily as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

Oliver swallowed hard, keeping them both afloat now by the hold he had on the pool edge above his head.

"You look scared," said Felicity, studying him with interest.

"I am scared," said Oliver hoarsely. "I'm scared I'm losing you, that you're not really here."

Felicity moved in closer, nuzzling her nose against his. "I'm here," she said throatily. "I'm here, Oliver and I'm never going to leave you, never."

Oliver let out a strangled breath, almost overcome by the rush of endorphins Felicity's promise caused in his body. Felicity started to dot soft kisses all over his face and Oliver's eyelids drooped, feeling himself relax under her gentle ministrations, a hand going up to her bare back and rubbing the soft flesh…

#

"I'm here," whispered Felicity shakily, keeping her face close to Oliver's as they both still sat in the rain inside the cabin. "I'm here, Oliver and I'm never going to leave you, never." Felicity felt him relax a little in her arms as she held her to him, her words seemingly reached him on some level. Her shoulders sagged in relief as she felt Oliver's heart rate slow a little under her hand. He wasn't as hot as before, the raining having brought his temperature down to somewhere closer to normal. Felicity stroked Oliver's face, feeling tears sting her eyes. He was so helpless and there was so little she could do to save him. Felicity winced as she saw him frown in his sleep. Without thinking, she bent over and pressed a series of soft kisses to that frown, wanting to just take all of his pain away.

Oliver gave a little sigh. "Felicity," he breathed in quiet agony, saying her name in his sleep.

Felicity bent her head lower and captured her name on his lips, just wanting his nightmares to end, to bring him some kind of comfort…

#

Oliver's eyes were almost closed when Felicity pressed her lips to his, her sweet taste immediately flooding his senses. His hand instinctively clenched on her back, pressing her closer to him. He could never be close enough to Felicity. Their kisses were soft and tender and Oliver's head was spinning from the teasing little tastes of her.

"I love you, Oliver," Felicity whispered against his lips. "I tried not to but I couldn't help myself. You can't leave me, please, you have to stay with me."

Oliver gave a little groan, unable to believe that Felicity could think he ever would. "I'm not going to leave you, Felicity," he promised her raggedly. "I can't breathe without you… I don't want to breathe without you. I love you... I've never felt this way about anyone before."

Felicity gave a soft smile. "I know," she said huskily. "You make me feel so safe, Oliver."

"You are safe," said Oliver fiercely, holding her gaze intently. "You're mine and I'm never going to let anyone hurt you or take you away from me, Felicity. That isn't going to happen."

Felicity gave a happy sigh and moved to kiss him again but as she did, Oliver noticed a shadow move across her face. He immediately tensed, craning his head up towards the pool edge and seeing the silhouette of a large man looming over them…

#

"I love you, Oliver," said Felicity shakily, stroking his face. "You can't leave me, please, please, stay with me." Felicity couldn't believe this was happening. Oliver could literally be dying in her arms. It wasn't fair, he didn't deserve this. After all he'd done for Starling City, after all the horrors he'd clawed his way back from, this couldn't be how it ended for Oliver. "I need you," said Felicity emotionally. "My day doesn't start until I see you and it doesn't end until you leave and all the minutes in between are my life, my life with you and even though I know that you'll never really feel the way about me that I do about you I can't stop loving you… I don't want to stop loving you."

She knew she was babbling, words tumbling out of her mouth over the top of each other but suddenly Felicity was panicking that she might never get a chance to tell Oliver how she really felt about him. All this time she'd kept her feelings to herself and now that seemed ridiculously stupid of her. She should have just told him the truth because people should know that you love them. She should have passed him a file one day, reminded him not to forget his 10am meeting and then told Oliver she loved him. It seemed so pointless and stupid now that she was protecting her pride by pretending he wasn't the most important person in her world. Felicity loved everything about Oliver, even the things which made her want to slap him. It didn't matter if the feelings weren't mutual, Felicity just wished she'd told him when she had the chance and could have heard and understood her properly. "You're not allowed to leave me, Oliver Queen," said Felicity shakily. "I'll get you all the coffees you want and change to low fat milk… just don't leave me." Her tears mixed with the rain from above as Felicity hugged Oliver to her, rocking him gently but then Oliver was tensing in her arms, his heart rate skyrocketing and Felicity knew something was terribly wrong.

#

Diggle turned off the car engine and peered through the rain at the cabin he knew served as reception.

"This is it?" asked Roy, looking out at the cabins illuminated by every flash of lightning. "It looks like that Bates Motel… only without the charm."

"This is it," said Diggle, reaching behind him to grab out the bag which he'd loaded with essentials before driving out to the cabins.

They both climbed out of the car and ran for the shelter of the first cabin, getting out of the rain. Diggle realized he didn't know which cabin Oliver and Felicity were in and he went to pull out his phone to call her when suddenly the door behind them open.

The old man who owned the cabins limped out, dressed in his pajamas and dressing gown. His hair was all awry, the comb over standing up at a strange angle on his head and even his beard looked disheveled. He looked between the two of them with a frown. "Can I help you gentlemen?"

"We're looking for two friends of ours," said Diggle. "They would have checked in earlier today."

The owner blinked. "It's nearly midnight."

"I know," said Diggle calmly.

The man frowned, looking between the two of them. "Look, I don't know what you city folk think is acceptable behavior but I know I sure don't need some kind of sex orgy going on in my cabins at all hours. Each to their own, I say but the wife doesn't need any more naked men wanderin' around here, gettin' her all frisky because, quite frankly, I don't have the knees of a young man anymore and I'm gonna do myself a mischief trying to keep up."

"Oliver is walking around naked?" said Roy in consternation.

Diggle grimaced, not liking the sound of that. "I'm sorry for the disturbances, sir. I promise you, we won't be a bother. In fact, we're here to take them both home."

"There are no refunds," said the man quickly.

Diggle reached into his back pocket and drew out his wallet, taking out an impressive wad of notes. "Of course not," he said smoothly. "And this is for any inconveniences you've had on our behalf."

The owner's face lit up a little at seeing how much money Diggle was giving him. "Well, it's no hardship," he mumbled, quickly shoving the money into his dressing gown pocket, "but if you insist."

"I do," said Diggle calmly. "Now, if you could just direct us towards our friend's cabin, we'll leave you to the rest of your evening."

"It's number four," said the man, pointing.

"Thank you," said Diggle. "We can take it from here. We don't want to keep you."

The man nodded and limped back into the cabin, closing the door behind him.

"That was a lot of money," commented Roy. "Just how much does Oliver pay you, anyways?"

"Try and stay focused," said Diggle, determinedly starting to stride towards the cabin. "I need you sharp."

"I'm sharp," said Roy, hunching his shoulders against the pelting rain. "My middle name is razor."

"Roy Razor?" said Diggle dryly. "I find that a highly dubious statement."

"I was trying to make a point."

"I think you made it," said Diggle a little sarcastically. "Let's hope your reflexes are a better version of sharp than your wit."

"Now you're just being mean for the sake of being mean."

He was worried about what he was going to find in that cabin and he was taking it out on Roy. "Sorry. That was uncalled for."

"We're on the same team, remember?"

"I know," said Diggle tightly. "Just remember what I said, protect Felicity, no matter what. Leave the rest to me."

"I've got it, don't worry."

Diggle blinked the rain out of his eyes and wished that was a possibility. His instincts told him that this situation was coming to a head and he didn't know what that was going to mean for all of them. Diggle quickened his pace, eager to get to both Oliver and Felicity before it was too late.

#

A crash of lightning outside illuminated the man standing over them by the pool's edge. "Diggle," gasped Oliver, "what are you doing here?"

Diggle looked down at him coldly. "She's not yours to keep. I'm going to make sure of that." Without another word, Diggle lifted his hand and that was when Oliver saw the glint of a gun.

A shot rang out, bouncing off the walls of the pool room and echoing eerily. Beside him, Felicity gave a gasp of pain and Oliver's head jerked around to see her beside him, a gaping hole in her chest and the water around them quickly turning red. Felicity's head lolled back and she sunk beneath the blood-stained water.

"No!" screamed Oliver in horror at the suddenness of the violence. He dove under the water, desperate to retrieve Felicity, to bring her to the surface but he couldn't see anything. The blood-filled water obscured his vision and Oliver was forced to just flail around under water, trying to make contact with Felicity again. He couldn't find her, no matter how hard he looked, she was just gone, swallowed up by the red waters, stolen away from him. In the end Oliver was forced to surface, his lungs burning as he broke the surface of the water, gasping for breath. Suddenly a hand was on top of his head and Diggle was pushing him underwater again. Oliver struggled to break free, thrashing about in the water but that hand was unrelenting. He could hear Diggle talking to him, his voice muffled by the water.

"You've failed her, Oliver. I took her away from her and you couldn't stop me. This is all your fault."

Oliver renewed his efforts to break free from the other man's grasp as anger surged through his entire body. He wanted to rip out Diggle's heart with his bare hands, wanted to make him pay for hurting Felicity, for taking her away from him. Even as he struggled to get clear of Diggle's hold, Oliver could feel himself running out of oxygen. His lungs were burning, screaming at him for oxygen and everything was starting to go black. A surge of adrenalin had Oliver renewing the fight for his life, every muscle working to free himself but the darkness was encroaching and he still couldn't break free…

#

Felicity felt Oliver tense and then bucked up in her arms. She gave a little cry of horror as Oliver began to thrash around, as though he was having some kind of seizure. "No, Oliver!" she cried out, trying to calm him down. "It's okay, you're oka—" One of Oliver's uncontrolled arm movements caught Felicity across the face. Her vision exploded into a thousand stars and Felicity was knocked backwards onto the floor, giving a cry of pain. There was the instant taste of blood in her mouth as the impact with the back of Oliver's hand split her lip. Felicity pushed herself up from the floor, blinking back tears of pain and watched as Oliver began to convulse beside her and then suddenly he gave one final shudder and then just went still. Felicity hastily crawled back over to him and put a shaking hand on his chest. "Oliver?" she said fearfully. Felicity couldn't feel his heart beating. "Oliver!" Behind her the door banged open and Diggle and Roy were bursting into the room.

"Felicity!" said Diggle urgently as he rushed over to them. "What's happened?"

"His hearts stopped beating!" said Felicity, fighting back the hysteria she could hear in her own voice.

Diggle gave her a quick look, taking in the bleeding lip. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she said anxiously, "it's Oliver who's in trouble. We need to get him to a hospital, fast."

Diggle checked for a pulse on the inert Oliver. "No time." He quickly opened his bag and rummaged around for the medical kit. Diggle pulled out a needle and syringe and a vial of norepinephrine, hastily drawing up the drug into the needle. He tossed a flashlight from the bag to Roy. "Here, hold this, I need to see."

Roy held up the flashlight for Diggle as Felicity watched the other man pull up Oliver's t-shirt. Before she could register what was happening, Diggle was driving the needle into Oliver's chest, injecting the drug into Oliver's body in a hope to get his heart beating again. They all held their collective breaths as they waited for Oliver to respond. Each second felt like a lifetime as Felicity stared down at Oliver's unmoving body, willing him to come back from this.

Roy moved, bringing the flashlight closer. "I think I saw his chest move," he commented unevenly, leaning over Oliver to get a clearer look. Suddenly Oliver's eyes snapped open and then his hand came up with lightning speed, grabbing Roy around the neck and squeezing violently. Roy made a strangled noise and dropped the flashlight, both of his hands going to Oliver's wrist to try and pull him off.

"Oliver, no!" said Felicity in horror. "Let Roy go!"

Diggle grabbed Oliver's arm as well, trying to get the younger man free from Oliver's death grip. Oliver's face was red, veins bulging in his neck, every muscle in his body flexed and on high alert as he glared furiously at Roy, fully intending to snap his neck. Roy's face was red and his eyes were starting to roll back in his head.

"Let him go, Oliver!" shouted Diggle through gritted teeth, struggling to free Roy.

Felicity put her hand to her mouth, watching the struggle as Oliver literally choked the life out of the younger man right in front of her eyes…

**A/N****: Poor Roy – what's that old saying – no good deed goes unpunished? . Just how much worse can Roy's day get… and how awkward will the next Queen family get together be if Oliver happens to kill his sister's boyfriend? REALLY awkward, that's how much. . Let's hope it doesn't come to that and at least three people get out of this alive… cast your votes, people… who do you hope makes it out of this in one (more or less) piece? ;) **


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N****: Good news everybody! I'm making great progress with this fic in the last couple of days and I'm up to chapter 40, so I thought I'd be a good and kind Aunty Lou and give you another update. I think it's important when we're dealing with a big action sequence to try and keep the momentum going a bit. And the next two chapters definitely require the biggest girl panties you have on hand. Also, I'm celebrating because I finished my Captain America fic, so I'm feeling close to sainthood right now… well, as close as I'm ever going to get, anyways. **

**Things are going so well, I've even given Hank some free time to do his own thing. I know this will undoubtedly come back to bite me in the butt because in the past, he has literally bitten me in the butt but what the hey, you only live once, right? And all my shots are up to date. Hank is currently running around the house with Fernando Del Vecchio's underwear on his head. Talk about big girl panties when it comes to a llama – you have **_**no**_** idea. I know I shouldn't let Hank eat that much sugar before breakfast but sometimes trying to force feed him oatmeal in the mornings is just not worth the effort… or the amount of poo I have to scrape out of my hair. But, that's life with a monkey living in your head… oatmeal on the walls and poo in your hair. Glamorous, I know. I wonder if Elizabeth Taylor ever had these kinds of issues? **

**Anyways, the chapter. We left Oliver and in particular, Roy, in a dire state. Let's see if Roy's day gets any better or this is just the middle of a downhill slide. **

**Hope you 'enjoy' and the action scenes make sense to you. As I often lament, they're not my fave to write…**

**CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT**

Oliver fought to keep his hold on Roy's neck, needing to neutralize the threat of the younger man to Felicity. The blood was pumping through his body at a furious speed, every cell in his body dedicated to taking out these threats to Felicity's safety. Diggle finally managed to get Oliver to break his hold on Roy's neck, Roy collapsing to the ground as he did, struggling for his next breath.

"Oliver, it's okay!" said Diggle loudly. "Calm down, we're here to help you!"

Oliver's doppelganger appeared in the corner of the room.

"_Don't listen to him," he ordered Oliver sternly. "You know what is coming next. He's going to kill Felicity and our baby. You have to stop him. Do it, do it now before it's too late!" _

Oliver made an inhuman growl and launched himself at Diggle, knocking the other man onto his back before clamping his hands around Diggle's neck and squeezing with all of his strength.

"Oliver, no!" he heard Felicity shout from behind him and then her arms were around his waist, trying to drag him off Diggle. "Stop it! Diggle is trying to help you!"

"_Felicity doesn't know what she's saying. She trusts everyone, that's why she needs us," said doppelganger Oliver sharply. "Remember what kept happening to her in our dreams. It's going to happen again unless you kill the people trying to take her away from us." _

"No!" grunted Oliver, tightening his hold on Diggle's neck. He couldn't lose Felicity. Just even the thought of such a thing galvanized Oliver into action. The agony of all the times he'd lost her in his dreams was still excruciatingly fresh in his mind and he wasn't going to let it happen again. So intent on neutralizing the threat of Diggle to Felicity, he didn't notice Roy get back to his feet in the flurry of subduing Diggle and Felicity's attempts to stop him.

"Felicity, out of the way!" Roy ordered her urgently and then Oliver felt the other man's arm go around his neck as now Roy was choking him.

"Let him go, man!"

Oliver did let Diggle go but only to grab Roy and flip him over his head. It was just enough of a distraction for Diggle to get out from underneath Oliver and scramble to his feet. "Roy, get Felicity out of here!" he shouted.

Oliver's eyes went wide and he hurled himself at Roy, tackling him to the ground before he could take a step towards Felicity.

"No!" shouted Felicity but Oliver wasn't listening. She didn't understand the danger she was in from these two men.

Roy took a swing at him but Oliver easily avoided it as Diggle came up behind him and grabbed Oliver around the waist. Oliver used the hold Diggle had on him to dispatch Roy, lifting his feet off the ground and kicking Roy very hard in the chest. Roy was knocked off his feet and ended up crashing through the small wooden table a few feet behind him. He hit the ground hard and then wasn't moving. Oliver could feel Diggle was trying to get a better grip on him by slipping his arms up under Oliver's armpits to hold back his arms but Oliver was too fast for him. He threw a punch above his head, landing a blow squarely on Diggle's nose. Diggle automatically loosened his hold on Oliver as he gave a grunt of pain and it was all the distraction Oliver needed. He slipped from Diggle's grasp and whirled around, throwing a violent punch at the other man's stomach. Diggle doubled over and Oliver brought up his leg, viciously kneeing him in the face. Oliver swept at Diggle's feet, knocking him to the ground and while Diggle was trying to recover from that assault, Oliver grabbed one of the wooden chairs from the table and smashed it down over the top of Diggle, the wood splintering into a hundred pieces with the force of the impact.

"Oliver, no!" wailed Felicity, her hands to her face. "Stop, please stop! Don't do this."

Oliver hurried over to her, grabbing her shoulders. "It's okay, Felicity," he said urgently. "You're safe. I'm not going to let them hurt you."

"Oliver, please, listen to me," she said desperately. "Diggle and Roy aren't trying to hurt us. You have to stop doing this."

Oliver fiercely shook his head at her. "No, I have to end this. I have to keep you and our baby safe. No one is ever going to take you both away from me again."

"Baby?" repeated Felicity in wide-eyed consternation. "Oliver, what are you talking about?"

Oliver put his hand protectively to her stomach. "Our baby," he said unevenly, blinking the sweat out of his eyes. "Our daughter. I'm going to keep you both safe and then we're going to be together. A real family forever."

Felicity was shaking her head at him, looking upset. "Oliver, there isn't a ba—"

He grabbed her face in his hands. "I know you're scared, sweetheart," he said hoarsely, "but it's going to be alright. I just need to finish this so I know you'll be safe." He pressed a hard kiss to her lips and then was turning around and stalking back over to the unconscious Diggle.

"Finish this?" repeated Felicity anxiously. "Oliver, what are you doing?"

Oliver could see the gun in the back of Diggle's pants and he pulled it out, flicking off the safety as he aimed it at Diggle's head.

"No!" screamed Felicity, throwing herself at him and grabbing his arm. "Oliver, no, I don't want this! Don't do this!"

"I have to," said Oliver through gritted teeth. He blinked away the sweat in his eyes, trying to focus and tried to stop his hand from shaking so he could get this shot off. "There is no other way, Felicity. You don't know the danger you're in. What Diggle is going to do to you if I don't stop him." Oliver started to squeeze the trigger.

Felicity grabbed his face and yanked it around to face her. "Oliver, listen to me," she ordered him, her voice low and shaking as she made him meet her urgent gaze, "we should just get out of here, leave, right now. It doesn't matter about anyone else. They're not a threat to us, not as long as we're together."

Oliver frowned, hesitating. "No," he said hoarsely, "I have to do this. You and the baby have to be safe."

Felicity kept one hand on his face but grabbed his free hand, pushing it to her stomach. "We're safe when we're with you," she said quickly. "That's all we need is you, Oliver. No one else matters. We can just go, walk out that door and drive away and then it's just you and me and the baby." Felicity stroked his flushed face. "You want that, don't you?" she cajoled him softly even as her voice shook a little. "You want us to be a family, just the three of us, don't you?"

Oliver's eyelids drooped, the sound of Felicity's voice penetrating through the fog of rage which he'd woken to. The hand holding the gun lowered a little as Felicity started to press little pleading kisses to his face and lips.

"Isn't that what you want, Oliver?" she whispered, lips brushing his.

"Yes," rasped Oliver painfully. He wanted that so much it was like a physical ache which had taken hold of his entire body. Oliver's hand spread out over Felicity's stomach, knowing their child was in there, the child they'd created together out of love. A fierce wave of protectiveness surged through his entire being at knowing Felicity was carrying his baby.

Felicity's hand had crept out and she was applying gentle pressure on his arm, getting him to lower the gun even as she never lost eye contact with him. "Then let's just go," she implored him again.

"But-but they hurt you," said Oliver raggedly, touching a shaking hand to her lip which was split and still bleeding.

Felicity gave a small shake of her head. "It doesn't matter, Oliver," she said softly. "Take me away from here and then nothing else will matter. I promise you. We'll be together, just the two of us and everything is going to make sense again."

"I-I can't lose you," said Oliver in anguish. "Not again."

"You're not going to lose me," Felicity promised him earnestly. "I'll never leave you, Oliver. Never."

Oliver sucked in a tortured breath, his whole body sagging. He couldn't refuse her, it felt like a physical impossibility. "Tell me you love me," Oliver ordered her raggedly.

"I love you," said Felicity without hesitation. "I love you, Oliver, with all of my heart." She began to gently pull towards the door. "Now, let's just get out of here, please. No one needs to die today for us to be together."

Oliver let Felicity lead him out of the cabin. "Wait." Suddenly he pulled away. Oliver quickly scooped up the car keys from the table by the door. "We need to get far away from here."

"Yes," said Felicity eagerly, "yes we do."

Oliver took her hand and held onto it tightly. "Stay with me, Felicity. I'll keep you safe."

She gave an uneven smile. "I know you will, Oliver."

Still holding onto her hand, the two of them stepped out into the heavy rain, making a dash for his car.

"_You're making a mistake." _

Oliver looked over his shoulder to see his double glaring at him disapprovingly from the cabin door. His stomach clenched at the warning but this was what Felicity wanted and he couldn't not give her what she wanted. "It's going to be okay," he reassured his naysaying twin unevenly. "It's going to be okay."

Felicity thought she was talking to her. "I know," she said, raising her voice over the rain crashing down on them. "But we have to get away from here."

Oliver quickened his pace but then was forced to slow it again as Felicity slipped a little in the mud. He immediately put his arm around her waist, steadying her with his body and then they were back to hurrying towards the car. They had to get away before the others came to…

#

Diggle gave a little groan and blinked his way back into painful consciousness. Roy was in a similar state of distress.

"What happened?" Roy asked shakily as he sat up and shook bits of table out of his hair. "Was I trampled by elephants?"

"No, just Oliver," said Diggle grimly.

Roy looked around. "So, we didn't win then? Where's Felicity and Oliver?"

The sound of a car engine turning over came over the rain.

"Leaving," said Diggle tightly as he quickly stood up and went for his bag. He had vague memories of Felicity's voice pleading with Oliver to leave. Diggle had a feeling both he and Roy owed their lives to her persuasiveness.

Roy rushed to the door just in time to see car headlights backlight the pelting rain and then the car was taking off in a squeal of tires and flying mud. "Definitely leaving," said Roy hastily. He looked back over his shoulder. "I guess we're following, huh?"

"You guess right," said Diggle determinedly.

Roy made an impatient face. "Then let's go already."

Diggle threw one of the tranquillizer guns to him which Roy deftly caught and then he threw the car keys.

"I'm driving?" said Roy in surprise.

Diggle straightened up, the bag over his shoulder. "I need my hands free." He strode past Roy, heading back to their car.

"Why?" asked Roy, hurrying after him and putting a hand up to shelter his head from the fierce rain as they ran to the car.

"For an insurance policy," said Diggle, his expression hardening.

"I don't know what that means."

Diggle climbed into the back seat of his car. "Hopefully you're not going to have to find out. Now, just drive. I don't want them to get too far ahead of us."

#

"Seatbelt."

Felicity looked at Oliver with big eyes. "What?"

"Seatbelt," he repeated and gave her an encouraging look. "Buckle up for safety."

"Right," said Felicity a little numbly as she pulled the seat belt across her chest with shaking hands. It was probably a good idea. Oliver was driving very fast.

"Are you alright?" he asked solicitously. "You look pale." Oliver reached across with one hand and placed a concerned hand on her stomach. "Is the baby alright?"

Felicity blinked, not sure where Oliver's delusions about a baby had come from but his concern for their nonexistent baby as well as for her seemed to be the tipping point in getting him not to kill Diggle and Roy in a fit of protective rage. Her best chance at containing this situation from getting any worse was to play along. Felicity forced a bright smile to her lips. "We're fine," she said, hoping the crack in her voice didn't betray her. "Couldn't be better now it's just us." Felicity pushed wet hair back from her face, wishing she had something actually dry around so she could get all the rain water off her glasses.

"I'm going to be a good father, Felicity," said Oliver earnestly as he divided his attention between her and the winding road. "You'll see."

"I know you will," said Felicity quickly, actually finding this conversation a little painful. There was never going to be a real baby between them and seeing a glimpse of Oliver as a doting father made Felicity acutely aware of what she'd never really experience with him.

Oliver rubbed her stomach tenderly through her wet pajama top. "My girls are all that matter to me."

"And you're all that matter to us, Oliver," said Felicity, putting her hands over his. "That's why we have to get away from everyone else. We don't need anyone but each other, right?" She needed to keep Oliver isolated from other people because after that little display at the cabin, Felicity had no doubts that he would kill to keep her safe from all of the imaginary threats he was seeing. It was not just an abstract concept anymore, it was really happening.

Oliver's head bobbed up and down in eager agreement. "Right."

"We passed an abandoned petrol station on the way up to the cabin," said Felicity, trying to think of the most isolated place she could. "We could stop there and—"

"No, we have to keep moving," said Oliver determinedly. "We have to put more distance between us and Diggle and Roy." He gave her a sharp look. "I'm not taking any chances when it comes to you."

Felicity bit her bottom lip and could only pray the two men were alright and not seriously hurt. Oliver had been intent on taking no prisoners and neither one of them had been moving when they'd left.

Oliver put a hand to her face and stroked her cheek lovingly. "It's alright, sweetheart, I won't let them hurt you. Don't worry."

"I'm not." Only she was, a lot. Oliver had calmed down somewhat from before but waves of heat were rolling off him and she could see that every muscle in his body was still pumped, veins sticking out all over his. Less than twenty minutes ago his heart had stopped beating. Felicity couldn't even begin to imagine what was going on inside his body. Oliver just seemed to be running on adrenalin right now. Adrenalin along with his natural drive and for the first time since meeting Oliver, Felicity really lamented that acute survival instinct of his. It meant it was going to make it hard for Diggle and Roy to stop him and if they couldn't stop him… Felicity didn't want to complete that thought. Her only hope now was to wait for Oliver's body to give way on him and then, in his weakened state, she'd be able to get him to real hope without the risk of him killing everyone in the room. All she had to do was wait this thing out and not upset Oliver any more than he already was. Suddenly there were car headlights behind them, cutting through the rain.

Oliver tensed, putting both of his hands back on the wheel. "It's them," he said grimly, muscle ticking uncontrollably in his cheek.

Felicity twisted around in her seat to see the headlights getting closer. "We don't know that for sure."

"It's them," he said tightly. "Hold on, I'm going to lose them."

Felicity turned back and gripped the edge of her seat as Oliver put his foot down on the gas and the car shot forward. The car behind them sped up too. It was definitely Diggle and Roy coming up behind them. The two cars raced along the muddy road and uneven road at breakneck speed with Felicity hanging on for dear life. She gave a little squeal as Oliver took a corner very sharply, back tires skidding on the mud and zigzagging over the road as he took a side road. They sped along the small back road and Felicity couldn't help but notice they were going up. Up didn't seem like a good idea to her right then. "Oliver, where are we going?"

"Diggle's car doesn't have back wheel drive," said Oliver tersely, concentrating on the road. "His car isn't going to be able to handle these mountain roads."

Felicity didn't know if that was good news or bad. She hazarded a look out her side window and was treated to a view of a sharp drop off her side of the road. The road was taking them up the mountain very quickly and the road was getting narrower and they seemed to be skidding out a lot more. It had to be a sharp drop off of at least five hundred feet to her right and Felicity definitely had the feeling Oliver was driving them into the literal version of a rock and a hard place. The higher up they went the more she wasn't sure how they were going to get out of this in one piece.

"I know!" snapped Oliver suddenly. "Okay, I know I should have killed them when I had the chance!"

Felicity looked at him wide-eyed. "Oliver?" she said uncertainly.

"I'm not weak and I'm not going to let them take her from us!" snarled Oliver, looking in the rear vision mirror and seeming to be talking to someone in the backseat. "Stop saying that!"

Felicity cautiously looked in the backseat but no one was there.

"Stop talking!" shouted Oliver, his face flushing even more. "Shut the hell up! I know what I'm doing!" The veins in his neck looked like they were about to burst.

Felicity turned back in her seat and looked out the front windscreen, gnawing on her bottom lip. She didn't know whether to acknowledge the fact Oliver seemed to be arguing with an imaginary person in the backseat or to just let it go.

"Don't listen to him, Felicity," said Oliver fiercely. "I've got everything under control."

She gave him an uneven smile. "Okay," said Felicity weakly and then realized something. "They're not following us anymore." She and Oliver both looked behind them at the same time and the car headlights were indeed gone. "You must have lost them," said Felicity unsteadily as she turned back around. "You did it, Oliv—" The rest of Felicity's sentence was cut off by the sudden reappearance of Diggle's car shooting out from a side road just in front of them. Oliver slammed on the brakes, throwing out a protective arm across her chest to try and brace her as they slid, out of control into the other car. They T-boned Diggle's car, Felicity flung around in the car like a rag doll at the impact. Her head was still spinning when she heard Roy's voice.

"I've got him!" Roy yelled, abruptly appearing by Oliver's driver's door window. However Oliver wasn't quite as stunned as Roy had obviously assumed because as the young man yanked open the car door, taser in one hand, a set of handcuffs in another, Oliver lashed out at him.

Felicity was still a little too much in shock to focus properly on the flurry of action which happened next but in a split second Roy was the one who was suddenly handcuffed to the driver's door handle and Oliver was forcing him to taser himself. Roy convulsed, sparks of electricity coming off him as the taser charge coursed through his entire body, flashes of light in the dark, rainy night. "No!" she screamed. "Oliver, no!"

The charge from the taser was done and now Roy was just hanging their limply, his arm shackled to the door as he lapsed into unconsciousness from all those volts coursing through his body. Oliver wasn't done. He stalked over towards the other car, obviously on the hunt for Diggle.

"You're not taking her from me!" Oliver bellowed into the storm as he sort out the other man.

Felicity scrambled out of the car, blinking against the rain which was still as heavy as ever. Almost consistent flashes of lightning illuminated the drama unfolding out below those angry skies and the thunder created a noisy soundtrack as Felicity struggled to catch Oliver up. Another flash of lightning showed her Diggle in the backseat, slowly coming around from where he'd obviously been knocked out from the impact of the crash. The car was dangerously perched with its front wheels hanging over the edge of the precipice, the impact from the crash having made it skid off the road. "Diggle, watch out!" she shouted at the other man, needing to warn him of the danger he was in, both from the position of the car and Oliver.

Diggle shook his head, trying to clear it but then Oliver was at the car but then, instead of directly attacking the other man as Felicity had feared, Oliver simply got behind the car and started pushing on it with all of his might.

"No!" said Felicity in horror even as the car, already unbalanced, slid on the mud and then it reached its tipping point, lurching forward and before she could do anything else, the car was disappearing over the side of the mountain, Diggle inside. Oliver stood at the edge of the drop off and looked down as the car plummeted down the mountainside. It hit the ground and then there was a brilliant fireball that even the rain couldn't immediately subdue as the fuel tank ignited. Felicity felt like she was going to be sick. There was no way Diggle could survive that fall or the subsequent explosion. Oliver had just killed his best friend and seemed happy about that fact. This was a nightmare. Felicity panicked and she turned and ran into the woods on the other side of the road. She didn't know what Oliver was going to do next and she was terrified.

"Felicity!"

She could hear Oliver shouting her name behind her but she just kept running, away from him, away from the horror of it all. Felicity kept slipping the mud, falling to her knees in her haste to get away. The branches of the trees scratched her skin, stones tore at her legs as she fell but she still kept running, too scared to stop. Suddenly strong hands were grabbing her arm, swinging her around.

"Don't run away from me!" yelled Oliver.

Felicity flinched at the anger she could hear in his tone but now he was pulling her back towards the road.

"We have to stay together," he said fiercely as Felicity struggled to break free.

"No," she moaned, "Oliver let me go." Felicity kept slipping over as Oliver half-dragged her back to the road but he his hands bit into her arm, refusing to let her go. They were back at the road and Felicity fell to the ground yet again and then tried to scramble away on her hands and knees but Oliver grabbed her around the waist, dragging her back to him.

He flipped her onto her back, straddling her and pining Felicity's arms above her head. "Why are you trying to leave me?" he shouted at her.

"You killed Diggle," sobbed Felicity, still traumatized by what she'd just witnessed. "Oh God," she said brokenly, face screwing up in grief, "you killed Diggle."

"I did it for you!" he bellowed at her. "Everything I do is for you, Felicity!"

Felicity's body heaved with her sobs, wracked by guilt to hear that.

"I did it because I love you and you love me," said Oliver fiercely. "Tell me you love me, Felicity."

Felicity couldn't talk, she was crying too hard.

Oliver shoved his face into hers, arms still pinned above her head. "Tell me you love me!" he roared at her.

Felicity flinched, scared of the violence she could see in his face. "Oliver, don't," she moaned around her crying.

"Tell me!" he demanded, face full of unbridled rage.

Felicity could feel the way Oliver's body was coiled so tightly and knew it would take nothing for him to kill her right then. Unbidden, memories of that video in Coates' lab came back to her, of the test subject brutally murdering that poor girl came back to her. Felicity began to shake uncontrollably as Oliver's hands tightened on her wrist, feeling like he was about to snap them. "Oliver," she whimpered in pain, "you're scaring me."

Oliver's face was so close to hers, full of angry confusion but then suddenly his expression crumbled, as her fear seemed to penetrate the madness he'd descended into. He abruptly let go of her wrists and hauled himself off her, staring down at her in horror. "F-Felicity," he rasped.

Felicity propped herself up on her elbows, still looking up at him fearfully.

Oliver backed away hurriedly, shaking his head and looking destroyed. "Felicity," he said brokenly.

Felicity sat up properly then, seeing the way he was still backing away from her, a moment of sanity having somehow penetrated his drug-addled mind. She looked at him in distress, not knowing what to say.

Oliver was now standing on the other side of the road, still shaking his head at her. "You-you're frightened of me." Oliver looked destroyed by that thought. He held her shocked gaze. "No one is going to hurt you, Felicity," Oliver vowed raggedly. "No one." He glanced over his shoulder and then looked back at her and she saw her Oliver again in those eyes. Then Oliver simply let himself fall backwards and before Felicity could even utter a sound, he'd disappeared from sight, throwing himself off the side of the mountain and down to certain death.

"No!" Felicity screamed, racing over on her hands and knees to the edge of the cliff and looking down. "No, Oliver! No!" Her whole world crumbled and all Felicity could do was scream into the abyss below for Oliver, even as she knew it was already too late…

**A/N****: Now **_**that**_** is what I call a cliff hanger… ones with actual cliffs in them! How's for that for going balls to the wall with killing off two of the main characters, eh? I know what you're thinking, it's a bluff, and maybe it is… but then again, maybe the rest of this story is going to be a homage to the movie Ghost? How's that for a thought? Maybe this whole fic has been a dream? Who's to say? Well, I am, now that I think about it but I'd certainly like to hear what you guys think about this chapter. And here's the deal (or possibly blackmail) – the more interest I see from people in wanting to know what happens next, the quicker the next update. Are Oliver and Diggle really dead? Is only one of them? Is Roy okay and will his testicles ever recover from the night they're having? Soo many questions, so little time. Let me know what you think… ;) **


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N****: Well, well, well, how awesome was your response to the last chapter, guys? Seems like all I have to do is kill off two main characters and suddenly I've got your attention. Good to know. I'll have to remember that in future. Don't want things to get too comfortable between us, now do we? ;) **

**I'm not going to say much leading up to this chapter as I'm pretty sure you're not reading this anyways because you're skipping ahead to find out if everyone I killed in the last chapter is still dead. That's cool. I get it. I would totally be doing that myself. I also realize that I'm currently talking to myself right now, which is also fine. I'm used to it. It's just when I pick fights with myself that it gets ugly. **

**Anyhoo, here's the portal to the next chapter… enter at your own risk!**

**CHAPTER TWENTY NINE**

Felicity put a violently shaking hand to her mouth, trying to stifle the sobs which were racking her whole body. Oliver was gone. She'd lost him forever. Her whole body was screaming with the pain as she stared over that cliff face. Felicity couldn't see below, it was too far away but she knew Oliver's broken body was down there somewhere. She had to see him. There was nothing she could do but Felicity needed to see him. And Diggle. Diggle was down there too. The two most important men in her life gone in heartbeat. Felicity felt like her soul was being ripped from her body. She somehow managed to stand, stumbling her way over to Roy, who was still handcuffed to Oliver's car door. Felicity knelt beside his slumped body and felt for a pulse. She blew out a strangled one of relief when she felt the strong beat against her fingertips. At least he was going to be alright but right then, Felicity felt like nothing was ever going to be alright ever again.

She limped back over to the edge of the road and looked down. Where Oliver had thrown himself off the cliff… Felicity had to stop and put a hand to her stomach just thinking that, feeling like she was going to vomit. It was a sharp drop down, nothing to slow his fall. Felicity looked to her left and saw that the drop off was decidedly less sharp a little ways down the road. She hobbled over to that spot and then started to make her way down the mountain side. It was still raining and she slid more than anything down the uneven ground, crashing into trees and bushes as she went. Her skin was cut by more branches and rocks but Felicity didn't care. The physical pain was actually some small kind of relief from the emotional agony she was in. It ended up not taking her that long to get down the side of the mountain, seeing as she was sliding down it more than anything else. Bits of leaves and debris were caught in her wet hair and as quickly as the rain washed the mud off her body, Felicity fell and was covered in it again. But none of that mattered. All Felicity could think about was getting to Oliver, being by his side one last time. She cried all the way down, not knowing if she'd ever be able to stop. Felicity skittered the last couple of feet to the bottom and stood up. Her sodden pajamas were ripped and stained from her descent but again, Felicity didn't even notice. To her right the fire from Diggle's car exploding was still burning, despite the rain. Felicity walked towards the smoking flames on numb legs, knowing Oliver's body would be somewhere nearby. She didn't want to think about the state Diggle's body would be in. An involuntary shudder wracked her body at even not thinking about it.

Felicity wrapped her arms around her body and just kept walking, stumbling a few times but in the end she found herself standing by the burning wreckage of Diggle's car. She stared at the flames with lifeless eyes, unable to comprehend that this was how it all ended. She was the last member standing of Team Arrow… who could have seen that coming? Felicity swallowed hard, fresh tears blurring her vision. In that moment she wished herself dead as well, just so this unrelenting pain would stop. She'd never felt so alone in her life. Suddenly, her tear-filled vision detected movement to the right of the burning car. Felicity blinked rapidly, trying to focus. A dark, misshapened silhouette stepped out into the light, the fire illuminating what Felicity was looking at. Her heart stopped beating for a full ten seconds, Felicity was sure of it. "Diggle?" she rasped. The reason Diggle's outline had initially seemed strange was because he had the body of Oliver slung over one shoulder. Felicity was too afraid to move, to blink even because he might disappear.

"Felicity," said the apparition quickly, "are you alright?"

Felicity just kept staring at him. "You-you're alive," she stammered. "How are you-you alive?"

Diggle walked closer to her and smiled. "Felicity Smoak smarts, saving the day since 2012." With his free hand Diggle pulled his shirt collar to one side.

Felicity gasped, seeing what lay underneath. "My suit!"

He nodded. "Yes, your suit. I was wearing it when Oliver pushed me over the edge in the car. I was able to get out of the car before it hit the ground because of it, kicked out the door and the suit absorbed the rest of the fall." Diggle looked at Oliver who was hanging limply over his shoulder. "Just like it absorbed Oliver's when he fell. I caught him."

"You caught him?" squeaked Felicity in amazement, unable to believe what she was hearing. "Oliver… he's-he's alive?" It was too much to hope for.

"Unconscious but very much alive," confirmed Diggle. "The fall knocked him out. It was just good timing that I saw Oliver fall and managed to get under him in time." He gave an approving nod at Felicity. "I know it's been said before but this suit really is amazing, Felicity. That's why I brought it along. I thought we might need it. Turns out I was right. It saved both of Oliver and mine live's tonight."

Felicity made a choked sound and clamped both hands over her mouth. She couldn't believe this. Her whole body was shaking so badly that she couldn't move.

Diggle moved closer and put a concerned hand on her arm. "Felicity, it's okay. Oliver is going to be okay."

Felicity gave a strangled sob and launched herself Diggle, wrapping her arms around him and Oliver's legs as they dangled over the other man's shoulder. She'd gone from absolute, bottomless despair to a euphoric high that was making her head spin. For one of the very few times in her life, Felicity was lost for words. She just clung to Diggle and sobbed her relief out into his chest.

Diggle patted her back soothingly. "I know, honey," he said sympathetically. "It's been a rough couple of days."

"I-I thought you were both dead," she wailed against his chest. "I thought you'd left me all alone."

Diggle gave a lop-sided smile. "No, you're still stuck with us."

"I-I'm so happy," sobbed Felicity.

A little laugh rumbled its way through Diggle chest against Felicity's cheek. "You sound happy."

Felicity pulled back and looked at what she could see of Oliver, which was just everything from the waist down. The other half of him was hanging over Diggle's back. "Are you sure he's okay?" fretted Felicity.

"He will be," said Diggle determinedly. "We'll get back to Starling City and I'll put him in a secure place and by then the antidote should be ready." His expression became concerned. "Do you know if Roy is okay?"

Her head bobbed up and down. "Yes, he's just unconscious too but he's fine."

"Rough night," repeated Diggle grimly. "For everyone." He glanced at Oliver. "We need to get Oliver out of here. What's the state of your car?"

"I think it's drivable," said Felicity. "It should be able to get us back to Starling City."

"Good," said Diggle, starting to stride towards where Felicity had come down the side of the cliff. "You came down this way?"

Felicity hurried after him. "Yes, it's steep but doable." They stopped at the bank of trees which Felicity had emerged from.

Diggle scanned the area, looking up. "Do you need help getting up there again? I can take Oliver up and come back for you. The suit will make short work of this slope." He grimaced and wiggled his shoulder a little, looking uncomfortable. "It's also making short work of my crotch. Do me a favor, and if you make me one of these, can you make it a little bit bigger? Circulation is being cut off to things I'm pretty fond of."

"Digg, I'll make you a suit any size you want in any color you want," said Felicity emotionally. "I'll even bedazzle it for you."

He turned to face her. "Just a longer crotch area will do me fine," said Diggle in vague amusement. "You know, when we get back—" Diggle didn't get to finish his sentence as suddenly Oliver snapped out of his unconsciousness.

Felicity gasped in shock as Oliver flipped himself over Diggle's shoulder, grabbing the gun from the back of the other man's waistband in the process. Oliver landed on his feet as Diggle spun round only to find the business end of a gun squarely pressed between his eyes. Felicity drew in a frightened breath, knowing the suit wasn't going to help Diggle with this. She and Diggle froze, the situation incredibly volatile as a wild-eyed Oliver pressed the gun end even harder into Diggle's forehead, despite the fact his hand was shaking badly. Felicity was too frightened even to breathe at the tense standoff, Oliver still clearly not in his right mind and intent on taking out all threats. The two men stared at each other.

Diggle raised his hands in submission. "Oliver," he said with admirable calmness, "put the gun down."

Oliver tightened his hold on the gun, a definite mania to his expression.

"Please," whispered Felicity fearfully, "don't do this, Oliver. Stop, just stop."

Oliver's hand began to shake more violently now as he wiped the sweat from his eyes. "I'm ending this," he said hoarsely. Oliver pulled the hammer back on the gun, expression hardening. "It's the only way to keep you safe."

Felicity squeezed her eyes, not able to watch this. She braced herself for the sound of a gunshot but instead she heard a dull thud instead. Her eyes snapped open to see Oliver collapsed on the ground, once again unconscious and Roy standing above him, car door in hand which he was still cuffed to, obviously having used it to clobber Oliver from behind. Everyone was shocked into stillness, creating a strange tableau in the finally lessening rain.

"This has _not_ been a good day," declared Roy loudly, looking a bit like a pissed off wild man himself. He was covered in mud and bits of foliage, clearly having had the same difficulty coming down the steep hillside as Felicity had encountered. Roy held out his hand with the car door dangling off his handcuffs. "And on a related note, does anyone have the keys for these things?"

Diggle slowly lifted his hand and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "They're in the car."

Roy looked past Diggle to the flaming wreck in the distance. His lips twisted in annoyance. "Of course they are," he said flatly. "What else did I expect out of a day like this?"

Felicity blinked rapidly a couple of times, trying to stir herself out of the shock of the continually changing circumstances she kept finding herself in. "We-we need to get Oliver out of here."

Diggle nodded and bent down and picked up Oliver's once again inert body, slinging it over his shoulder. "Wait here," he instructed Felicity. "I'll come back for you." With that, Diggle took off up the steep hillside running, covering a lot of ground quickly and making it look as though Oliver weighed nothing at all.

Roy was by her side, watching Diggle make short work of the slope. "That suit of yours really is something else, Felicity." He screwed up his face. "Even though I don't know if its capabilities completely make up for what I saw in my rear vision as Diggle changed into it when we were chasing you guys down." Roy gave an unhappy sigh. "I've seen parts of that man which aren't good for our ongoing, healthy working relationship."

"Sorry," said Felicity dazedly, still trying to get her bearings on all that had happened.

"Yeah, me too," said Roy morosely.

"If it helps any, I saw Oliver naked tonight," said Felicity unevenly, still watching Diggle's ascent.

"So, is this going to be a new thing for Team Arrow?" asked Roy, sounding a little concerned. "Random acts of gratuitous nudity?" He scowled. "And why is it only the guys doing it? I could live with it if it was more equal opportunity."

"You're never going to see me naked, Roy," said Felicity firmly.

"I know," he sighed. "I get Diggle's big old ass in my face instead. It doesn't seem fair. The situation I mean, not the ass… even though the ass wasn't fair either."

"Well, it wouldn't be," murmured Felicity. Somehow capping off this evening with talk about John Diggle's naked butt seemed to fit in with the whole surreal nature of this entire experience.

"Yeah, I guess." Roy paused. "This is a weird conversation, isn't it?"

"I can't tell anymore," said Felicity shakily, starting to climb back up the hill, not wanting to wait on Diggle. "Nothing makes a lot of sense to me at the moment."

Roy threaded his arm through the window of the car door and hiked it up on his shoulder, following Felicity's lead. "Tell me about it," grumbled Roy. "This entire day has been a kick in the balls." He pulled a face and shot a quick apologetic look at Felicity. "Sorry, genitals."

"You were right the first time," said Felicity unsteadily as she hauled herself up the hillside. "I just want to get Oliver somewhere safe and get that antidote into him."

"Do you think the antidote will make him forget everything that happened?" asked Roy. "Because if it does, I think I'll sign up for some."

That was another problem Felicity hadn't even thought about. She didn't know if she was rooting for Oliver to forget or remember everything. It was all still so confusing. Felicity needed time to process all of this and now wasn't really the time or the place. Besides, until she was certain Oliver was going to get through this ordeal, Felicity couldn't really collect her thoughts about anything else.

#

Roy walked into Verdant, feeling every muscle in his body aching, some of them he didn't even know he'd had before. The car door was still hanging over his shoulder. With everything that had been going on, there hadn't been any time to find bolt cutters. It was just after five o'clock in the morning and he was spent. After driving back to Starling City with a car door on his lap, they'd dropped Felicity off at her home and then Diggle had taken Oliver to a secure location, an old disused prison as it turned out. He'd put the still unconscious Oliver in a cell and then they'd gotten news the antidote was ready. Roy had kept watch over Oliver while Diggle went to get the antidote. Diggle had returned, given Oliver what they hoped was going to be a cure for his crazy and then sent Roy home. After having experienced what it was like to be in the inner sanctum of Team Arrow, Roy wasn't sure it was for him. Yesterday afternoon and last night had been brutal.

"What time do you call this?" Roy looked up and saw Thea standing at the top of the stairs, arms folded in front of her, glaring down at him. "You missed your shift last night and didn't even call." Thea walked down the stairs, her frown deepening as she looked at the state of him, torn clothes, covered in drying mud, bits of leaves and twigs still caught in his hair. "Why do you have a car door chained to your wrist?"

Roy looked at the car door, his exhausted mind scrambled for a plausible excuse for the car door and the state he was in. He eventually let out a tired sigh. "I've got nothing," Roy admitted frankly.

Thea's lips thinned into a disapproving line. "Really, you've got nothing, that's what you're going to go with?"

Roy shrugged. "Pretty much." It was just too hard to explain what yesterday had entailed, even if he'd been prepared to tell Thea the truth. A lie to encompass his current condition was just beyond Roy right then.

Thea made an annoyed sound, stomping past him. "Unbelievable!"

Roy turned around and watched her continue the rest of the way down the stairs. "So, we still on that break?"

Thea looked back over her shoulder at him, eyes throwing daggers.

Roy made a resigned face. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

#

Felicity closed her eyes as she let the warm water from the shower blast her face, pulling bits of debris from her hair. It felt so good to get clean again after sitting in wet, filthy clothes all the way back to Starling City. After Diggle and Roy had dropped her off, Felicity had just sat on her sofa, unable to move. She supposed she was still in some kind of shock but it was only when the dawn's light started to creep through the window that Felicity realized she needed to get cleaned up. Felicity winced as she lathered herself up, some of the soap getting into her many small cuts and scratches which dotted her entire body. She applied shampoo to her hair and was forced to give another grimace at aching muscles as she worked the lather through her hair. Felicity felt like a train wreck and she had no doubt she looked like one. Roy, Diggle and Oliver hadn't looked any better when she last saw them. Felicity swallowed hard at the thought of Oliver. It had been so hard to leave him but Diggle had insisted it was for the best. Felicity just wanted to be near him, to tell him that he was safe now but she didn't even know if that was true. What if the antidote didn't work? What if it made him worse or just killed him outright. Felicity gave a low groan as her imagination worked overtime.

"Don't think like that," she ordered herself unsteadily. "Oliver is going to be fine." Felicity blew out an unsteady breath. "He has to be." She stepped out of the shower on unsteady legs, sick at the thought of the alternative. Felicity quickly dried herself off and changed into comfortable sweats. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, taking in the many bruises she could see on her bare arms, neck and face. Along her jaw was a particularly bad one, where Oliver had accidentally backhanded her in his sleep. Her split lip was still swollen and throbbing a little. Oliver would be mortified to know he'd done that to her and Felicity knew she'd never tell him. It wasn't his fault, none of it had been his fault. It was a nightmare which had started because he'd wanted to do the right thing, he'd wanted to help people. Felicity heard her cell phone ring and she practically ran from the bathroom into the bedroom to answer it. She snatched it up. "Diggle?" Felicity exclaimed. "How is he? Is Oliver alright?"

"Calm down, Felicity," said Diggle in that unflappable way of his. "Oliver is resting comfortably and I've given him the antidote."

"Are you monitoring him carefully?" fretted Felicity, starting to pace up and down. "We don't know anything about this antidote. We only have Coates' word for it that it even works and she had a lot of reasons to lie. Maybe it's a trick and it's only going to make Oliver worse or maybe he's too far gone or we got the dosage wrong or—"

"Felicity, stop," said Diggle firmly. "None of those things are going to happen. You have to have a little faith."

Felicity bit her bottom lip and immediately regretted it as the broken skin sent her a painful reminder of its delicate condition. "I just need Oliver to be alright, John," said Felicity painfully. "I don't know what I'd do if-if…" She trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.

"And you're not going to find out because Oliver will make it through this," said Diggle with admirable confidence. "Don't worry. Get some sleep. You need it."

"I can't sleep," said Felicity unsteadily. "My brain won't shut off."

"Just go and lie down and you'll be surprised. You're running on adrenalin right now. That's going to peter off and then the sleep will come."

"I should be there, with you and Oliver," argued Felicity. She felt anxious being this far away from Oliver. Talk about a madness shared by two alright.

"You can't do anything for Oliver right now," countered Diggle. "And I really think you need to stay away from him for the next little while, until this thing is out of his system properly."

Felicity frowned. "How long will that be?"

"I don't know. This is unchartered waters. I'll just see how Oliver handles his withdrawals. We don't know how this antidote works or how long it will take."

"But I should be there," pushed Felicity. "In case Oliver needs me."

"Felicity, think of this like rehab," said Diggle patiently. "Oliver is in rehab for his addiction to you. You know how these things work. You don't let drugs and alcohol visit the patients in a regular rehabilitation clinic. You're his drug of choice and Oliver needs to quit you cold turkey. The antidote should help him with that but I think your presence would be more of a hindrance than a help right now."

"Right," said Felicity quietly, feeling crestfallen for a lot of reasons. She'd been the only one who could make Oliver better during all of this, now she was the one thing he needed to stay away from. Felicity blinked back tears. Was it wrong of her to miss being the only thing Oliver needed, even when she knew it wasn't real or even good for him? Felicity had known this would happen, knew she'd be heartbroken when Oliver no longer needed her that way. She'd tried to steel herself against the inevitability of this moment but it hadn't worked. A tear slipped down her cheek. She drew in a fortifying breath, praying Diggle couldn't tell she was crying. "But you'll call me," said Felicity anxiously. "The moment anything changes with Oliver, good or bad. I need to know."

"I'll call you," said Diggle readily. "I know it's impossible, but please try not to worry Felicity. Just go and get some sleep. Oliver will need you at 100% when he gets over this."

Felicity didn't have any idea what Oliver would want or need from her after this was all over and that scared the life out of her. She had no idea what life would be like for the two of them post this situation. It was a huge, gaping unknown that Felicity felt herself teetering on the brink of. What if Oliver didn't want her around anymore? What if he remembered nothing? What if he remembered everything? Every scenario Felicity could think of unnerved her and it was hard to imagine what their relationship was going to be like going forward… or if there was even going to be one. Fresh tears rolled down Felicity's face at the depressing thought. It felt like she'd just exchanged one nightmare for another…

**A/N****: You all forgot about the suit in the heat of the moment, didn't you? And you forgot about why it was Diggle might want Roy to drive and his secret weapon. See, a total method to my madness! So, everyone is safe, if a little bit worse for wear, now the real fall out begins. Where to from here? You just know it's not going to be as simply as hugging it all out. And you must also know by now I enjoy torturing my readers… so yeah, there is that to look forward to. But, just remember, the more I torture you, the bigger the payoff I feel I owe you all, so there is that. What do you think happens next? Is Oliver going to pull away? Is Felicity? Is Diggle's crotch going to survive this evening? Will Roy have to spend the rest of his life with a car door handcuffed to his wrist? Still so many questions to answer when it comes to this fic… :D**


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N****: And here we are, post the big, climactic cliff hanger and I always find these chapters difficult. Normally, in a book, you'd build to those big moments and then just have a chapter or two to tidy things up and then you're done, everyone off the roller coaster. Because I'm not following this (very sensible and tried and tested rule) I find the chapters that immediately follow big climaxes like the last two chapters to always be a little inherently anti-climactic. You have to let people relax a little again and then the book usually finishes but with me, I'm giving you a moment to catch your breath before we launch into the angst of this story in earnest. Lots of big emotions and feels and beating of breasts coming up so while we're off the 'will they live or die' rollercoaster, we are now boarding the 'will they work this all out' rollercoaster. So, brace accordingly for all those tropes, won't you? ;) **

**Also, can I just share a trauma I had today regarding this story? No, okay, well, I'm doing it anyways, so brace accordingly, won't you? I opened the document for this story and it was only half there. I nearly died. You know that, 'blood drains from your face, heart pounding moment' when you think you've lost over 100 000 words of story? I was already mentally writing the A/N to break the news to you guys that I couldn't rewrite all those chapters and sorry, the story was over. I closed it and opened it up again and viola! the story was back in its entirety. But I'm telling you, those 15 to 20 years that it took to reopen the story was the longest of my life. . I should really work out how to back these things up so I don't go through that again. Argh. **

**Now, on an unrelated note, I'm also going to periodically start sharing little tips I've discovered to make yourself seem more interesting and intriguing then you actually are in social settings. In these days of social media where everyone gets to validate your existence (or dismiss it) by way of the currency of the 'like' button, you have to find a way to stand out and make an impression. Now, admittedly, when I was going through my list of things to do this, a good portion were one, Hank's ideas and two, immoral, illegal or just physically impossible without some major surgery. So, I won't be sharing those. What I will share with you is a little game I like to call the 'If you know what I mean' game. **

**This game is simple. You make a statement of fact. Like – 'I went to the Laundromat today' and then you add 'if you know what I mean." So, what was once a banal task of necessity has suddenly been imbued with a wealth of intrigue and possibilities. Your audience will suddenly be concerned they've missed out on a new euphemism floating around and your life will instantly seem that much more colorful and interesting because you're up on the latest lingo AND had some kind of Laundromat analogy event in your life. How awesome do you sound right now? And it's so easy, it can be applied to anything…**

"**I found a hair in my soup today… if you know what I mean." **

"**I think that freckle on my arm just turned into a mole… if you know what I mean." **

"**I'm having baked beans for dinner… if you know what I mean." **

"**I need to worm the dog today… if you know what I mean." (Hmm… that last one has unintentional overtones of bestiality… maybe you should use that one. On a side note, I wonder what FF censuring is going to make of the word bestiality if it blocks out panties?) **

**My point is, you can making any mundane task or observation sound fraught with intrigue and invitation with the addition of those six simple little words. Try it for yourself and you'll see. It's good fun for the whole family… if you know what I mean. ;) **

**And now, let's dive into this chapter even though I do think you'll be a bit let down by it because of the above stated reasons but never mind. I've just got to get to work and build more tension for you to enjoy (read suffer). *sigh* A maniacal dictators work is never done. **

**CHAPTER THIRTY**

Diggle looked into the large bag of a variety of takeaway foods and then gave Felicity a lopsided smile. "You do know there is only Oliver and me, right?" he teased her gently. "You weren't buying dinner for the Green Bay Packers."

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I didn't know what you'd feel like, so I just kind of got everything."

"So I see."

Felicity shifted her weight from one foot to the other, looking past Diggle to the door which led into the disused prison. "So, how is he?"

"Resting comfortably," said Diggle.

"Is-is the antidote working?" asked Felicity anxiously.

"It hasn't been twenty-four hours yet, Felicity," said Diggle calmly. "I think we need to give this thing a bit more time. Oliver had a huge dose of the XR-320 in his system. The antidote isn't going to correct that overnight."

Felicity bit her bottom lip. "Ow," she complained distractedly, obviously hurting that split lip of hers.

"How are you feeling?" asked Diggle in concern.

"I'm okay," said Felicity quickly. She moved her shoulders restlessly. "Just worried about Oliver, you know?"

"I know," he said quietly, "but there is nothing more any of us can do except wait."

Felicity looked up at him. "What about you, how are you going? You must be exhausted."

"I sleep when Oliver sleeps and I'm used to extended times without sleep from the military," said Diggle easily. "You don't need to worry about me, Felicity. In fact, try not to worry at all."

"That would be easier if I could just see Oliver," she said unhappily.

"That's not a good idea."

"I know, you said." Felicity rubbed her arm. "It's just weird going from putting all this energy into making sure Oliver stays close to me to not being able to see him at all. It makes me feel like I'm abandoning him when he needs me the most." Felicity looked like she was about to cry as she said that.

Diggle reached out and drew her into a comforting hug. "You know that isn't true," he admonished her gently. "And you know that Oliver doesn't think that either."

Felicity hugged him back tightly. "Does he? Does he understand why I'm not there?"

"He understands, Felicity."

"I just don't want him to hate me when this is all over," said Felicity unevenly.

"We've talked about this. Oliver is incapable of hating you, Felicity. That is not something you should be worrying over."

Felicity drew back from the hug and grimaced. "Okay." She didn't sound overly convinced.

"Did you get some sleep today?"

"A bit. I've been organizing some stuff for the office remotely. Everyone thinks Oliver is away on a business trip and I just made it look that way." Felicity gave a small smile. "It's lucky I'm really good at forging Oliver's signature on things."

Diggle arched an eyebrow. "I didn't know that."

"Yeah, Oliver doesn't know that either." She cocked her head. "I should probably mention that to him one day."

"That you regularly forge his signature," said Diggle in amusement. "Probably."

Felicity made an exasperated noise. "It I didn't, Queen Consolidated would have ground to a halt by now. If Oliver knew half the things that he should be doing but I do on his behalf—" Felicity rolled her eyes. "He just hasn't got the time with all the Arrow stuff. So, I divide the labor. He leaps off tall buildings, shooting arrows and taking down bad guys and I do some light to moderate corporate forgery." She shrugged. "We're playing to our strengths."

"You're a good team," agreed Diggle.

"We all are." Felicity gave him a heartfelt look. "You saved both Oliver and I, John. I don't think either of us would be alive right now if it wasn't for you."

Diggle shook his head. "We all played out part to get through this. Even Roy."

"Did he get that car door off his hand?"

"I assume so."

Felicity sighed heavily. "It's been a crazy couple of days."

"But we're through the worst of it now. It's just a waiting game now."

Felicity's expression became pained. "You'll call me if anything changes with Oliver, won't you? Good or bad."

She kept asking him that and he kept giving her the same answer. "I'll call you, Felicity. I promise."

She gave a little nod. "I guess I should go then," said Felicity reluctantly.

Diggle could tell she still wanted to see Oliver. "I'm taking good care of him," he promised her. "Oliver's going to be fine. He's is practically indestructible. The guy should have been dead a hundred times already but he always ends up rallying." Diggle half-smiled. "I'm beginning to think he's a vampire."

Felicity gave a little laugh. "That would explain a lot."

"Go, get an early night," said Diggle kindly. "I'll call you the minute Oliver is himself again."

"Okay." Felicity turned to leave but then stopped. "Call me if you need anything. I don't care what time it is."

"I will, just go, take it easy."

Felicity hesitantly turned back round, heading off. Diggle waited until she was back in her car and driving away before walking back into the prison. He walked down the long, concrete corridors, footsteps bouncing around the grey walls until he was back at the cell he'd chosen for Oliver. His patient was pacing up and down in his cell.

Oliver stopped pacing as soon as he saw Diggle and walked up to the bars. "Digg, let me out of here. The antidote has worked. I feel fine."

"Is that right?" asked Diggle calmly as he set down the food and started to dish it out onto the paper plates Felicity had thoughtfully provided.

"Yes, I told you earlier, I don't need to be in this cage."

Diggle finished putting food onto Oliver's plate and then walked over to the cell bars. "You still look all flushed and sweaty to me."

Oliver gave him a charming smile. "It's just the aftereffects of the toxin leaving my system. It's nothing. I'm telling you, I feel like my old self again."

"That may well be but I think we should give it a little longer, just to be safe."

Oliver's expression flickered but he kept that easy smile on his face. "Okay, but shouldn't Felicity be here, monitoring me too. I mean, she's the one with the science background."

"Computer science."

"It's still a science."

"We don't need Felicity." Diggle studied the other man's face carefully. "Right?"

Oliver gave a little shrug. "No, of course not. I just thought you might need a break."

"I thought it was because of her scientific knowledge?"

Oliver's jaw hardened ever so slightly. "Can't it be both? You're making a big deal out of nothing, Diggle."

He shrugged. "Let's hope so."

"I should call Felicity, let her know I'm doing better."

"You're not calling Felicity."

The smile was gone from Oliver's face. "Why are you doing this?" he growled. "Why are you keeping us apart?"

"You know why, or, at least, you should, if you were in your right mind."

Suddenly Oliver lashed out violently through the bars, knocking the plate of food from Diggle's hand as Oliver tried to grab at him. "I know what you're doing!" he shouted at Diggle. "You want Felicity for yourself. I can smell her all over you! I'm going to kill you if you've hurt her!"

Diggle stepped back and calmly wiped an assortment of takeaway foods from his clothes. "Yup, that's what I thought." He fixed Oliver with a look of censure. "You're not getting your dinner until you calm down." Diggle went back to the chair and table he'd set up by Oliver's cell and took a seat, starting on his own plate of food.

Oliver repeatedly threw himself against the bars. "You can't keep us apart!" he shouted at Diggle. "You're not going to stop me!"

Diggle took out the newspaper and opened it on the table, reading as he continued to eat. "I know, that's what the bars are for." Eventually Oliver calmed down again as Diggle continued to eat and read.

After a little while, Oliver's tone was back to being cajoling. "John, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"The XR-320," said Diggle conversationally. "That's what came over you."

"I really am feeling better though," said Oliver quickly.

Diggle looked up at him.

Oliver gave him a particularly sincere look. "At least let me out of the cell to have some dinner. I promise, I won't try and get away."

Diggle leaned back in his chair. "You know, during one of my tours in Afghanistan, this stray dog wandered into camp. He'd get the same look in his eye when he was wanting food as you've got now… right before he'd try and take your hand off." He arched an eyebrow at Oliver. "I learnt my lesson. I think you're fine where you are, Oliver, at least for the next little while."

Oliver's face darkened into an uncontrolled rage. "I am going to kill you!" he roared, going back to throwing himself against the bars. "I know what you're doing! You won't stop me being with Felicity. No one will stop me!"

Diggle went back to his newspaper, blocking out Oliver's continuing threats of dismemberment and painful death. He knew he'd tire himself out in a bit. Even though it didn't look like right then, with Oliver spitting venom at him, Diggle was actually hopeful that the antidote was taking effect. Oliver's rage at least had bouts of calmness and those periods of calm were getting longer. Diggle suspected Oliver had just been set off again when he'd smelt Felicity's scent on him. It just strengthened his resolve that the two of them should be kept apart for a little while longer. Diggle turned the page of the newspaper and took another mouthful of sushi, settling in for the night. He'd had worse Friday night dates. At least the food was good, even if the surrounds and company left a little to be desired.

#

Thea looked at the shelves behind the bar at Verdant and frowned. "Did we get that delivery of scotch yet?"

Roy joined her on the other side of the bar and looked at the shelves as well. "No. I've been playing phone tag with the delivery guy all morning. He's meant to be texting me back when he's going to turn up."

Thea made an annoyed tutting sound. "I think I'm going to change delivery companies. This is ridiculous. Every week we have the same problem. How hard is it to make deliveries at the same time every week?"

"Apparently very," said Roy wryly.

"We open in an hour," said Thea in frustration. "How much scotch do we have in the back room?"

"Hold up, I'll check." Roy headed off to the back room just as the cell phone in his coat jacket, which was hanging over a nearby stool, went off.

"Your phone just got a message!" Thea called out to him.

"Check it," called back Roy from the other room. "It might be the guy."

Thea fished out Roy's cell phone from his jacket and checked the messages. Her jaw hardened as she read the newest message.

Roy came back to the bar. "There are four bottles. That's not enough to get us through tonight. You might have to offer up half price shots or something to distract the customers from the fact we'll be out of scotch within half an hour." He stopped and frowned. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Thea glared death at him. "Who's Bunny?"

Roy's eyes went a little wide. "Wh-what?"

"Bunny, who's Bunny?" Thea demanded to know.

"He-ah-he's a friend of mine," said Roy, suddenly looking flustered.

"Bunny's a man?" asked Thea in open disbelief.

"Yeah, he is."

She looked back down at the text, reading it aloud. "Had fun last night, kitten, hope to meet up again soon." Thea scowled at him. "Care to try again?"

"Bunny is a man," said Roy, not budging with his obvious lie.

"A man called Bunny who calls you kitten?" bit out Thea, feeling the jealousy tear through her system.

"Yes."

Her eyes narrowed menacingly. "Seriously?"

"He's a dude," protested Roy. "A weird dude, but he's still a dude."

"How long have you known this _dude_ for?" asked Thea angrily.

"We met last night."

Thea folded her arms in front of her chest. "You mean last night which ended up with you dragging a car door around with you?"

Roy gave an uncomfortable shrug. "I guess."

"And you're still not going to tell me what happened last night?"

Roy gave that careful thought. "That's probably a no on that one."

"You know, it's stuff like this which made me call a break on us in the first place," bit out Thea.

"It is?" asked Roy in surprise and then quickly back tracked, nodding his head up and down. "It is," he agreed seriously.

"You don't know why we're on a break, do you?" asked Thea in outrage.

"Hey, what do you think I am?" asked Roy defensively. "Of course I do."

Thea arched a challenging eyebrow at him.

Roy was going down swinging. "Maybe _you_ don't know why we're on a break."

Thea's lips thinned. "That's completely idiotic._ I_ called the break!"

"I know what I've done," said Roy sharply and then hesitated, eyeing her hesitantly. "Or didn't do maybe—"

Thea put her hands on her hips and gave him a look of death. "Seriously? _Seriously_, Roy Harper?"

"Hey," huffed Roy, "I don't have to put up with this psychological abuse. Maybe I'm the one calling a break now!"

"You can't call a break when we're already on a break!"

"Watch me!" Roy made some kind of definitive flapping motion with his hands which Thea assumed was meant to look official. "We're on a break!"

"You're a moron," said Thea flatly.

"A moron who is still calling a break," said Roy triumphantly. His cell phone beeped with another message.

Thea's jaw hardened. "Another message from Bunny?"

"No, Paulie, the delivery guy. He's just pulled up out back. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have crates of scotch to unload."

"Don't hurry back," snapped Thea.

"Why would I? We're on a break," threw back Roy over his shoulder.

"Oh!" said Thea in frustration, grabbing a nearby shot glass and throwing it in the direction of Roy's retreating back. She missed and it hit the floor, shattering into a million pieces.

Roy looked down at all that broken glass. "If we weren't on a break I'd clean that up for you, but hey, we are, so the dustpan and brush is behind the bar."

Thea opened her mouth to retort but Roy was already gone. "Moron!" she yelled after him. It wasn't the witty rejoinder she'd been hoping that would come out of her mouth but she was too mad to think straight right then. Who did he think he was, calling a break on her? If there was any break calling to do, she was going to do it. Thea fumed as she collected the dustpan and brush and started to clean up the broken glass before customers arrived.

"Oh dear, looks like someone has had a little accident."

Thea looked up to see a well-dressed, older man smiling down at her, his British accent very distinct. She straightened up and gave a little frown. "I'm sorry, we're not open yet."

"It's alright, honey, I'm actually here looking for someone. His name is Roy." The man looked at him expectantly. "Do you know him?"

Thea blinked. "I'm sorry, you are?"

"I'm Bunny," said the man affably.

"_You're_ Bunny?" said Thea in disbelief. "But-but you're a man."

Bunny checked. "Last time I checked." He cocked his head. "So, is Roy here?"

"Oh… ah… you know, I'm not sure," lied Thea. What the hell was going on here? She put down the brush pan and fished for information. "So, um… how do you know Roy exactly?"

"We met last night," said Bunny easily. "Ships in the night, if you will."

"How did you two meet?" asked Thea in confusion. The man obviously had breeding and a lot of money if that suit and Rolex was anything to go by. It wasn't like he and Roy would exactly run in the same circles.

"Well, he turned up at my hotel suite with a friend and I do have trouble saying no to wastrels who land on my doorstep." Bunny gave a mischievous smile. "Particularly ones as pretty as Roy."

"Roy isn't gay," blurted out Thea and then blushed at her loose tongue.

Bunny just smiled. "Oh, young men like that don't know what they are," he said blithely. "Apparently he's on the outs with his girlfriend, I believe her name is Thea and well, he was just questioning a lot of things in his life." Bunny gave a little shrug. "I always like to think of sexuality as being a fluid thing anyways. You're attracted to who you're attracted to. I don't really feel the need to label these things. Call me an old romantic but perhaps if Thea can't meet all of Roy's need, maybe I can be of assistance in that area." He gave Thea a charming smile. "No harm in at least throwing out the net and see what I land, eh?" Bunny cocked his head. "I'm so sorry, my dear, here I am, prattling on and I haven't even asked after your name."

"Sally," said Thea abruptly, "my name is Sally."

Bunny took her hand and kissed the back of it. "Enchanté, Sally. Always a pleasure to meet a beautiful woman."

"Nice to meet you too, Bunny," said Thea dazedly.

"Well, I suppose if my kitten isn't around, I'll try another night," said Bunny philosophically. "I like to strike while the iron is hot." He gave Thea a cheeky look. "But then, I can always have the pleasure of warming said iron back up again, now can't I?"

Thea made some kind of mumbled, nonsensical response which she hoped would be enough to satisfy the other man. She was in too much shock right then to do much else.

It seemed to be enough for Bunny because he smiled. "I won't hold you up anymore, Sally. I do hope we'll meet again." With a jaunty little wave Bunny was sailing out of the room on a cloud of expensive men's cologne.

Thea watched him go, her mind a jumble of incoherent thoughts until it settled on one very clear one. _Oh hell no!_ She rushed to the back of the club, to the delivery area. Roy was just stacking the newly delivered crates against the wall.

He put down the crate he was holding and dusted off his hands, looking at the shipment. "You know, maybe we should double the order or something and that will mean less deliveries—"

Roy didn't get to finish his sentence as Thea grabbed his arm and swung him around. She grabbed at the front of his shirt and pulled him into a passionate kiss. Roy tensed, obviously shocked by this sudden turn of events but then he was kissing her back with just as much ardor. Thea pulled Roy's shirt tails from his pants, while dragging him towards the back room office for a little more privacy. There was no way Roy was going to be questioning who he was attracted to, Thea was going to make sure of that as she continued the fervent onslaught which Roy seemed more than into, much to her satisfaction.

#

Oliver paced up and down in his cell, periodically throwing dark looks at Diggle who was currently engrossed in a book. The other man was sitting up on a bunk bed in a nearby cell, long legs stretched out in front of him, back against the wall. The only solace Oliver currently found in Diggle's presence was the fact that if he was here, he wasn't anywhere near Felicity and Oliver needed to know that right then. Diggle looked so relaxed and at ease that Oliver wanted to scream at him because he felt anything but those things. Oliver was in agony over this separation from Felicity. There were moments when being away from her seemed bearable but then the need to be close to her would come up in waves and swamp him completely. Like now. Oliver needed to have Felicity there right now. He needed to feel her soft skin under his hand, needed to hear her say his name and tell him it was all going to be alright. He craved the taste of her in his mouth, the smell of her in his nostrils otherwise he wasn't going to survive this night. His need for her was a physical ache which threatened to consume him completely. Oliver doubled over, putting his hands on his knees and willing himself to remember how to breathe. Sweat rolled down his overheated face and dripped down onto the floor, darkening the grey concrete. Oliver's knees gave way and he was forced to crouch on the ground, one hand out in front to steady himself from falling the rest of the way.

"Just breathe, Oliver."

Oliver blinked the sweat out of his eyes and looked up, trying to focus on Diggle who was now standing in front of his cell, looking down at him in concern. "I need her," rasped Oliver achingly. "I-I can't do this without Felicity."

Diggle crouched down so he was on the same eye level as him, talking to Oliver through the bars which separated them. "You can do this, Oliver. I know you feel like hell now but you're going to get through this because you're strong." He half-smiled. "And stubborn as a mule. You're not going to let this beat you."

Oliver scrunched his eyes closed and shook his head. "No," he said desperately, "I need Felicity. Please, Diggle, I can't do this."

"You _are_ doing this."

Diggle didn't understand. He didn't understand how Oliver's lungs were on fire and each new breath was like breathing razor blades or that every muscle in his body was shaking. And that wasn't the worst part. The true torture came in the form that Oliver couldn't shake this growing dread that the real reason Diggle wouldn't let him see Felicity was because that she wasn't alright like he'd said. Oliver remembered Felicity's fear, her trying to get away from him and his desperate need to stop her. What if his fear had driven him to do something truly horrible to her? What if he'd blocked out an unforgiveable act of violence and Felicity was badly hurt because of him… or worse? Oliver felt the bile rise to the back of his throat and he had to swallow hard to keep it down. "Is-is she dead?" he asked raggedly. "Is Felicity dead?"

"No," said Diggle quickly, "she isn't dead, Oliver. Felicity is going to be fine."

Going to be. So, she wasn't now? He tensed. "Is she h-hurt?" Oliver stumbled over the last word, just the thought of it bringing him physical pain.

"Just a few scrapes. Nothing she'd want you worrying about."

Oliver wanted to believe him, had an almost hysterical need to do so but the horror remained. "I don't believe you," he said in anguish. "I've killed her, haven't I?" Oliver's face crumpled in despair. "Oh God, I've killed Felicity." His heart felt like it was being torn in two.

"Felicity isn't dead," said Diggle firmly. "You smelt her on me before, remember? How could you do that if she was dead?"

Oliver's head was spinning, trying to process that fact with the dread curled up in the pit of his stomach which screamed at him otherwise.

"You just need to get through the next couple of days and you'll see that for yourself, okay?" Diggle encouraged him. "All you need to know right now is that Felicity is perfectly alright and safe and waiting for you to get better."

Oliver looked at Diggle with haunted eyes. "Please don't be lying to me," he pleaded desolately.

"I'm not." Diggle drew in a long breath and gave him a considered look. "I'm going to come in there and help you on the bed. If you try anything, I'm going to win… and be pissed. You don't want either of those things."

Oliver dropped his head, knowing there wasn't any real fight left in him at the moment. All he wanted was Felicity and she felt impossibly far away from him right then. It was all a nightmare which seemed to have no end…

**A/N****: Hands up everyone who'd like to give poor old Oliver a cuddle right now? Form an orderly queue behind me. ;) Yeppers, everyone's still not out of the woods yet… although Roy's day is looking up. I figured he deserved a little somethin' somethin' for what I've put him through. Lol So, hopefully the next chapter will be up tomorrow for y'all. I'm doing some tweaking, rewriting and additions to it, so we'll see how that comes out. Wish me luck. (I'm putting in an Olicity scene because I figured you guys would like that. See how good I am to you… in between periodically ripping out your hearts… I'm a double edged sword like that)**


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N****: Hi all, thanks for turning up for this chapter. **

**I hope you're all still enjoying this story. With the change of gears from what was happening in the story, I hope you're not getting bored with it all. It's a little hard to tell sometimes and to try and gauge reaction to different parts of a story. Anyways, I suppose I'll just keep posting and we'll see what comes of it, eh? And on that note, I'm going into another rotation where I only have one day off in a month, so yeah, heads up but I might slow down a bit with the posting. Again, we'll see but they do tend to take a bit out of me and when I'm tired the muse isn't very useful. She just mostly refuses to get out of bed and eats cheezels all day. Ugh, nothing worse than cheezel crumbs in your bed. **

**Myself I've just woken up from a 3 hour nanna nap, man I love Sundays when I don't have to work. Mind you, at 3 hours, that's more of a retirement home nap then one actual nanna. I got up and planted out my new veggie garden after that, so I felt like I didn't completely waste my day. **

**Hank has no qualms about not being productive in a day which I don't actually mind because his idea of productive often means I suddenly have to deal with cops on my doorstep asking what that smell is. So yeah, I quite like it when his hands are idle. **

**Sorry, meandering random A/N's more than normal, still half asleep from that nap. *yawn* Anyways, here's the chapter… thanks for listening politely while mentally working out what you're going to have for dinner. Don't worry, I was doing the exact same thing… **

**CHAPTER THIRTY ONE**

Roy walked back into the delivery area, still a little dazed from what had just happened. He distractedly tucked his shirt back into his pants, still awash in post-coital hormones. He didn't understand women at all, not even a little bit. Thea had practically attacked him like a wild animal and they had some amazing sex and now they seemed to be off their break. Roy was confused but not willing to jeopardize this newfound equilibrium between them by asking too many questions. He went to grab more crates to stack, feeling a stupid grin taking over his face when a very attractive Asian woman suddenly appeared in the delivery bay. She was wearing a fitted, all black suit and short skirt, along with a little peaked cap.

"Mr. Harper?" she said with a Thai accent.

Roy frowned a little, caution always being his first instinct when people he didn't know popped up knowing his name. "Who wants to know?"

"My name is Pang," she said calmly. "My employer would like a moment of your time."

"Who's your employer?"

But Pang was already walking away and after hesitating for a few seconds, Roy followed her out into the side alleyway where a white Roll's Royce was parked. Pang walked over to the back door and opened it.

She inclined her head. "Please to enter."

Roy cautiously walked up to the luxury car and poked his head in.

"Kitten! There you are."

Roy's eyes went wide. "Bunny?" said Roy, recognizing the older man from last night and not remembering what Diggle had called him. It was some hyphenated name, ending in Hamilton maybe? Roy really couldn't remember so he had to resort to the nickname. He quickly looked over his shoulder. "What are you doing here? How did you find me?" Roy scowled. "In fact, how did you get my phone number?"

Bunny patted the seat beside him. "Come in and take a seat, kitten."

Roy gave another look over his shoulder and then he was climbing into the car and sitting beside him.

"I have my resources," said Bunny easily. He inclined his head. "Many resources in fact. I have people who find out things I want to know, like who the cutie was who ended up in my bedroom last night."

"Thea and I are back together," said Roy quickly, not wanting to give the guy the wrong impression.

Bunny gave him an innocent look. "You don't say? So, how did you mend that particular broken fence, honey?"

Roy opened his mouth and then closed it again. He grimaced. "I-ah-I don't really know," he conceded.

Bunny's lips turned up into a knowing smile. "Don't tell me, let me guess. Your little goddess just suddenly leapt on you and rode you like you were the last bull at the rodeo."

Roy's eyes widened. "How did you—" He stopped abruptly, taking in how pleased with himself the other man suddenly looked. "Wait, what are you saying, that was you?" he blinked. "But-but how… when… why?"

Bunny just smiled. "Every boy needs a fairy godmother," he said sweetly. "Think of it as my version of a box of chocolates."

Roy shook his head in confusion. "But how did you get Thea to… I mean, she was so mad at me and then she just… you know… wasn't."

The older man smiled. "I told you. I know women."

"You know, I still have no clue what the initial break was over," said Roy, floundering a little. He gave Bunny a tentative look. "Do you?"

"It didn't come up," said Bunny blithely. "But I would recommend paying more attention when that sweet girl talks. I think she has abandonment issues. You need to make her feel safe in your affection for her."

Roy nodded his head slowly. "Okay, yeah, I'll work on that." He looked at Bunny with some confusion. "Ah, thanks, I guess. I appreciate you, ah… helping out with me and Thea."

Bunny gave a little shrug and smile. "I'm just an old romantic at heart. I try and fall in love at least twice a day, three times on Sundays if I can."

"Well, you know, thanks, if there is anything I can do—"

Bunny tapped his finger to his cheek. "Just give your Aunty Bunny a little thank you kiss. That's all this fairy godmother requires by way of payment."

Roy hesitated and looked over his shoulder at the driver.

"Oh, honey, don't worry about Pang. Trust me, he's seen a lot more action in the back of this limo then you've had hot Sunday dinners."

"He?" said Roy in consternation as he looked again at the beautiful young woman who was calmly sitting behind the wheel, ignoring their conversation.

"Pang is a ladyboy," said Bunny conversationally. "He hates it when I call her a he."

Pang gave him an unamused look in the rear vision mirror. Apparently she wasn't ignoring their conversation after all.

Bunny chuckled. "I can't help but tease."

"Wait," said Roy, head spinning, "are you telling me that's a dude?" The fine boned, carefully coifed creature in the driver's seat looked 100% woman to him. So what, now he couldn't even tell men from women? This was a concerning development.

"Half and half," said Bunny easily. "I do like my pretty things. Speaking of which." He tapped his cheek again. "Where's my sugar?"

Roy grimaced and then found himself giving Bunny a quick kiss on the cheek, not even sure why he was doing it. There was just something kind of compelling about the older man.

"There, that wasn't so awful, was it?" said Bunny teasingly.

"I'm not going to lie, it was weird," said Roy unevenly. "I've never kissed a dude before."

"Well, color me honored to take your virginity on that one, kitten," said Bunny impishly.

Roy blushed a little. "Still not gay," he said determinedly.

Bunny gave a light laugh, looking amused by Roy's seriousness right then. "Alright then, good to know."

"What are you doing here?" asked Roy unevenly. "Apart from doing some relationship makeover with me and Thea? Which I still don't even know why you did."

"I like my friends to be happy," said Bunny simply. He patted Roy's knee. "And we're friends, aren't we?"

"I don't make friends easily," said Roy tightly. "There is usually some kind of angle."

"My angle is I find you and your broad shouldered friend intriguing and I'm not often intrigued." Bunny shrugged. "I'm planning on being in Starling City quite often in the future. It'd be nice to have some people I can claim as more than acquaintances when I am here."

"Right," said Roy cautiously. "So, what do you want from me exactly?"

"Nothing malignant, Kitten. Just to drop in on you now and then to say hi."

Roy looked at him blankly. "Why?"

"I told you, I think you're interesting."

"I'm not."

"Mm," murmured Bunny and looked down at Roy's hand. He held up Roy's wrist where there were still bruises from the handcuff. "Boring people aren't into handcuffs," said Bunny teasingly. "And enquiring minds can't help but wonder who or what you were handcuffed to recently?"

"It was a car door," said Roy hastily. "It was nothing kinky. I was just handcuffed and tasered."

"Oh my, I'd love to hear your version of kinky if that doesn't qualify," said Bunny in amusement.

"It's wasn't a sex thing," said Roy sharply, grabbing his hand back. "It was a-a…" He still didn't exactly know how to describe last night.

Bunny patted his knee. "It's alright, honey, I'll fill in my own blanks. I find it's more fun that way." He cocked his head. "I will go ahead and assume it had something to do with your friend who was exposed to the XR-320 though. Is he still alive?"

"Yeah, he's going to make it."

"Impressive," said Bunny admiringly. "You really are a resilient little bunch, aren't you?" He smiled. "I'll have to meet Mr. Survivor one day."

Roy grimaced. "Yeah, no, I don't think that is going to happen."

"Never say never, kitten." Bunny smiled. "I'm just very happy to know everything came out in the wash. All's well that ends well, eh?"

Roy hesitated. "I guess."

"You don't sound very sure."

"I don't know. Things got pretty… weird there for a bit. I don't know if everything is going to go back to normal too quickly." Roy scowled, not sure why he'd just said that. He wasn't one for oversharing but with Bunny he kept letting his mouth run off. What was up with that?

"Maybe you'll just all find a new kind of normal?" suggested Bunny philosophically. "That's not necessarily a bad thing."

"I guess," said Roy but he wasn't completely convinced. He really didn't know how that first meeting between Felicity and Oliver was going to go after all that had happened but he suspected it was going to be weird. Roy didn't envy them.

#

Diggle looked up at the sound of approaching footsteps.

"Just checking in on Captain Psycho," said Roy. He peered into the cell where Oliver was curled up on the bed. "How's he doing?"

"Getting there but I still wouldn't leave him alone with small children and pets," said Diggle evenly. "He's still obsessing over Felicity but it's getting better, slowly."

"And how is Felicity?"

"Obsessing over Oliver."

Roy pulled a face. "They're kind of a perfect match, huh?"

"They're having their moments, that's for sure." Diggle looked him over. "I see you got the car door off your wrist."

Roy looked at his arm. "Yeah." He grimaced. "Thea had some questions about that."

"You let Thea see you chained to a car door?" asked Diggle in exasperation.

"It wasn't intentional, I wasn't expecting her to be at the club at that time in the morning and I couldn't exactly hide it," said Roy in annoyance. "What was I meant to do, shove it in my pocket? Oh hey, Thea, no, I'm not happy to see you, that's just a car door in my pocket."

"I see your point. Thea's already seen you naked. She's got to know you're not packing a car door down there."

"Hey, I am more than adequate down there," said Roy hotly. "Like you'd even know."

"I just assumed," said Diggle mildly, "because you can keep yourself upright and don't keep falling flat on your face… or your car door for that matter."

"Can we stop talking about my junk?" asked Roy irritably.

"Gladly."

Roy walked over to where Oliver was sleeping fitfully on the bed. "So, do you really think he's going to come out of this okay?"

"I'm staying optimistic but based on Oliver's previous propensity to walk these things off, yeah, I think he's going to be okay in the end." Diggle paused. "Hopefully."

Roy turned around to face Diggle. "So, I got a visitor earlier tonight."

"Tooth fairy?"

Roy held his stomach and faked laughed. "Oh, I get it, because I'm so young." His feigned humor abruptly dropped from his face. "Unlike you, grandpa, who was probably around for the moon landing."

"I was around for the moon landing," said Diggle calmly.

"Seriously?" exclaimed Roy in surprise. "Just how old are you anyways?"

"Old enough not to feel the need to answer that question," said Diggle dryly. "So, who was your mystery visitor?"

"Bunny."

Diggle gave a small frown.

"He turned up at the club and—"

"And what?" asked Diggle intently.

"And got Thea to have sex with me," said Roy unevenly.

"What? How?"

"You don't think if I knew how he did it I wouldn't have just done it myself?" said Roy in frustration. "Anyways, I don't know what to make of the guy." He gave Diggle a pointed look. "And oh hey, thanks for the heads up about him being a big bad arm's dealer. Really appreciate that."

"We went to Forbes-Hamilton with a dead body to dispose of and he was a known associate of a mad woman doing human experimentations," said Diggle flatly. "What did you think he was, a Sunday School teacher?"

"I don't know," said Roy in annoyance. "I was just trying to get out of there without being sexually interfered with."

"You're perfectly safe from Bunny's advances."

"You're calling him Bunny now," noted Roy.

Diggle gave a shrug. "Forbes-Hamilton is a mouthful."

"You'd know what he'd say to that if he was here, don't you?"

"Fortunately he's not, so let's leave the double entendres at the door, hmm?"

"The double what?"

"Never mind."

"Anyways, I just wanted to give you a heads up that he's not going to forget that favor you owe him anytime soon." Roy pulled a face. "You know you really shouldn't leave yourself wide open with a guy like that."

"I can handle Bunny," said Diggle easily.

"I think that's his hope, yes," agreed Roy readily.

Diggle gave him an unamused look. "Funny."

"I have my moments." Roy stuck his hands in his pockets. "So, apart from giving you the heads up that your would-be stalker is using me as a warm up, I thought I'd offer my services to take over for a while. You know, so you can go and do whatever it is you do in your free time." He paused. "I always kind of assumed you sit in a darkened room and practice having no expression every night. Maybe break open the mineral water if you really want to get crazy."

"I find it a little unsettling that you give actual thought to what I do in my down time," said Diggle flatly. "Do you know how much thought I give to your private life?"

"Zero?"

"Think of a smaller number."

Roy rolled his eyes. "Whatever. So, do you want me to Oliver-sit or what? I could be cleaning vomit out of the men's room bathroom right now, so you know, I've got better things to do."

Diggle inclined his head. "I appreciate the offer but I've got this covered." He hesitated briefly. "And I appreciate what you did for me the other night too."

"You mean saving your life?"

"Yes, that."

"So, you want to thank me for saving your life." Roy nodded approvingly. "Okay, go for it."

"I just did."

"That was it?" squawked Roy. "You know how hard it was to drag that damn car door down the mountain. Not to mention the fact by nuts still had 50 000 residual volts running through them and they were not happy." He pulled a face. "Last night was not a good time for my testicles all round," he said morosely.

"Why are we back talking about your crotch?" asked Diggle in exasperation.

"I don't know. I guess I'm pretty heavily invested in that part of my body."

"Doesn't mean I have to be," said Diggle dryly.

"I'd prefer that you weren't. It's bad enough that Bunny is as interested as he is in my man bits. I don't need any more attention down there." Roy waved a hand. "You know, at least not from dudes."

"Well, consider my disinterest to be large and permanent." Diggle inclined his head. "But thank you for your offer of help with Oliver."

"Wow, two thank you's in one night." Roy arched an eyebrow. "What, am I dying or something?"

"Depends how much longer you intend on standing there and talking," said Diggle straight-faced.

"Only you could follow up gratitude with a death threat," said Roy in exasperation. "Not for nothing, guy, but you send a person really mixed signals."

"Harden up, princess."

Roy rolled his eyes. "Yeah, this talk has been special for me too." He turned around and went to leave. "See you when I see you."

"That will be soon. With Oliver and Felicity out of action, we'll be running Team Arrow for a bit."

Roy turned back around and looked intrigued. "You mean I'm getting a promotion?"

"If by promotion you mean you're going to do everything I say without question, then, yes, you're getting a promotion."

Roy made an annoyed face. "I'm back to being your butt monkey, that's what you're saying, right?"

"Let's be honest here, Roy, you never really stopped."

"Yeah, well, the next time this _butt monkey_ has to save your life, he's going to think long and hard about that," said Roy in annoyance. "Man, what does it say about your leadership when I already miss the guy who's shot me in the leg, threw me into a table and tasered me?"

"That you should get faster on your feet," said Diggle wryly.

"Hey, Oliver got the jump on you more than once," shot back Roy. "Don't make out I was the only one."

"My point is that we don't have to be besties, you just have to do what I say," said an unconcerned Diggle. "That's how a chain of command works."

Roy gave a grunt. "Awesome, can't wait."

"Just keep your phone on," said Diggle easily. "I'll call you when I need you."

Roy turned to leave again. "Fantastic, you do that."

Diggle could hear Roy muttering away to himself as he walked off and gave a little smile. Roy was a diamond in the rough and Diggle was intent on knocking some of the rough edges off the young man because he could see his potential. Plus, it was really fun to annoy him and Roy just bit way too easily. Diggle grimaced. He really needed to start dating again.

#

"Oliver."

Oliver heard his name being called as though it was a long ways away.

"Oliver."

A hand touched his arm and his eyes immediately flew open and he rolled from his side onto his back, tensing. His eyes went wide to see who was standing over him on the little bunk bed. "Felicity," he rasped in shock.

She immediately put her hand to his mouth. "Quietly, you'll wake Diggle." Felicity looked over her shoulder to where Diggle was stretched out on a bunk bed in an adjacent cell, fast asleep.

Oliver quickly sat up, keeping his voice low. "Wh-what are you doing here?" He couldn't keep his eyes off her. Oliver felt the happiness bubble up inside him to be this close to her again.

Felicity grimaced as she took a seat next to him on the bed. "I needed to see you," she confessed unsteadily. "Digg kept telling me you were alright but I needed to see for myself." Felicity held up a key. "So, when I came in and found Diggle asleep, I kinda swiped the key from him." Felicity gave him an uncertain look. "I hope that's okay?"

"Y-yes, yes, it's okay," said Oliver quickly, words falling over the top of themselves to get out. He blinked. "I can't believe you're here," he said in awe. Oliver's gaze swept her up and down. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?" His face crumbled with regret. "Felicity, I frightened you, made you fear for your life. I'm so sorry. I never wanted to hurt you. I can't handle the fact that—"

"It's okay, Oliver," she said hastily. "None of what happened was your fault and besides, I'm fine." Felicity gave him a bright smile. "Don't I look fine?"

Oliver's gaze swept over her again at the invitation but this time a lot more slowly. He finally dragged his eyes back up to meet hers. "You look perfect," he rasped.

Felicity looked a little flustered at that but she put a hand to his arm and made a concerned face. "But what about you, Oliver? You nearly died last night. I was so worried. I can't tell you what that did to me."

"I'm sorry," he said hoarsely. "I never meant to put you through all of that." Oliver closed his eyes. "All I wanted to do was protect you."

"And you did."

Felicity's voice was much closer now and Oliver's eyes flew open to see she had moved in, her face scant inches from his. His breath hitched in his throat at her proximity. "Diggle… Diggle doesn't want us to see each other," he said unsteadily. "He thinks I'm still out of my mind over you."

Felicity held his gaze steadily. "Are you?" she whispered.

"I don't know," he said honestly. "All I know for sure is that I love you."

Felicity looked overcome. "Oh."

Oliver looked at her intently. "What's wrong?" His heart was beating madly as he worried that his love would be the last thing Felicity wanted after what he'd put her through.

"I thought… when you were given the antidote… I thought you would—" Felicity trailed off, looking upset.

"What, not love you anymore?" asked Oliver in disbelief. "Felicity, loving you is the only thing which is keeping me sane right now." He took her face in his hands. "That's not going to change. You have to believe me," said Oliver urgently. "Not now, not ever." Relief washed over Felicity's pretty face and Oliver smiled. "I love you," he said intently. "You don't have to love me back—"

"I do," she said quickly. "I do you love you, Oliver. I always have."

Oliver couldn't not be kissing her any longer. He dropped his head and found Felicity's lips, starving for this simple intimacy between them. Felicity returned his kisses without hesitation and Oliver was lost once more in this woman. He went to wrap his arms around her waist and draw Felicity closer to him but she pulled back, giving a little wince.

"Ow."

Oliver's brows furrowed in immediate concern. "What's wrong?"

Felicity gave a little shake of her head. "It's nothing. Just a few scratches. I'm okay."

Oliver wasn't convinced. He drew back a little and then with tentative hands pulled up the material of the blouse she was wearing. Across the pale skin of Felicity's ribs were ugly, painful looking scratches. "Felicity," he said in anguish. He looked up at her. "What have I done to you?" Oliver could feel himself beginning to shake at the sight of the injury he'd caused her.

"Nothing."

"Felicity," he groaned unhappily.

She bit her bottom lip, looking at him keenly. "Nothing you can't fix," continued on Felicity huskily.

Oliver's eyes widened a little at the clear invitation he could see in Felicity's expression.

"Why don't you kiss it better?" Felicity prompted him softly.

Oliver swallowed hard, not quite able to believe this was happening but more than willing to comply with Felicity's request. He held Felicity's gaze as he gently lay her back on the bed but then his attention was drawn to pushing the material of her blouse further up so that more of her stomach and ribs were exposed. Oliver ducked his head and pressed his lips to the dip just below her ribcage and Felicity gave a happy sigh at the soft caress. He kept one hand on her hip as he dotted gentle kisses all around the abrasions to her skin, even allowing himself to taste her silken flesh with languid strokes of his tongue.

Felicity squirmed a little under him at his tender ministrations. "Oh yes," she sighed in contentment. "That feels so good, Oliver."

Oliver rubbed the stubble of his cheek against her stomach, reveling in this moment. "I just want to make you happy, Felicity," he confessed achingly.

"Then don't stop," she said throatily.

Oliver lifted his head to see the way Felicity was looking down at him, eyes full of expectation. His hand tightened on her hip. "If I start, I don't think I'll be able to stop," he cautioned her raggedly.

"I don't want you to stop," said Felicity huskily. "I don't ever want you to stop."

"Felicity," he groaned, feeling himself immediately harden at her words. _God how he wanted this woman._ Oliver pushed the material of her skirt up, not wanting to waste one more moment of their time together with not bringing Felicity pleasure. He moved down her body, kissing his way up above Felicity's knee, along her inner thigh, intent on claiming his prize. Felicity arched up under him approvingly, hand going to the back of his head and encouraging him towards his goal. Oliver groaned loudly, trying to fight back his own arousal and wanting this to last for a very long time. Preferably forever. He pressed a lingering kiss to the apex of Felicity's thighs, fingers hooking themselves in her panties and drawing them down, needing to taste her properly. Oliver moaned again as the scent of her arousal filled his nostrils. "Felicity," he groaned.

The sting of the freezing cold water caused a strangled cry to be involuntarily ripped from Oliver's shocked vocal cords. He jerked awake and completely off the bed he was very much alone in. Oliver landed on the ground with a painful thud and blinked rapidly at the large man standing over him, still trying to work out reality from dreams.

Diggle held up a single imperious finger to him. "No," he said in a tone which brooked no argument. "Just no, okay?" And with that ominous warning, Diggle was heading out of the cell again and locking it behind him.

Oliver was left gasping on the floor like a fish out of water, still in a state of pretty heavy arousal despite the bucket of cold water Diggle had just emptied over him. He groaned loudly and flopped back on the hard, unforgiving concrete as it fully hit home that he'd just dreamt up that encounter with Felicity. _Again._ Oliver let out a loud growl of vexation which bounced off the walls of his cell and echoed down the hallway. He needed Felicity more than ever now and he knew there was no way Diggle was going to let that happen. Even sleep was no respite from his need for her. Oliver screwed up his face as his level of frustration reached near nuclear proportions. "SON OF A BITCH!" he bellowed out into the uncaring universe.

"I've got another bucket of water here with your name on it if you don't keep it down a bit," cautioned Diggle from where he was back sitting in his own cell.

Oliver's only response to that was to let loose with every profanity he knew at the top of his lungs and quite a few he made up on the spot. It didn't help any but it made him feel ever so slightly better. At least until the next bucket of water was emptied on him…

**A/N****: I know, I know, another dream, how much do you hate me right now? **

**Wow, that much, okay, that was a little bit more than I was prepared for. I may need to process that for a bit… and possibly take out some form of personal protection. The theme of the upcoming chapters is all about frustration. Oliver's, Felicity… yours. So, settle in, peeps, our uphill slog is still, well, uphill slogging. Lots of emotional chapters coming up but hopefully I'll try and have a couple of moments of levity in there so you don't go completely cray cray with it all. **

**So, is this change of pace working for you, not working for you? Are you ready for this all just to be resolved sooner rather than later or are you here for the buildup between Olicity? Thoughts, feelings, opinions, lettuce, bread… oops, sorry, that dissolved into my shopping list for tomorrow. Disregard the last couple of things… unless you really do feel lettuce about this fic and then by all means, let me know, won't you? :) **


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N****: Let me confess up front I feel an overwhelming urge to apologize for this chapter for reasons which will become apparent once you start reading. **

**If it helps any, let me tell you the mission statement I have for this fic and really all my fics. It's all about the journey and getting there, for me, is usually a bittersweet thing. It's like me tuning into Arrow every week (which I will be doing now). Going into every episode, I'll have this little hope I'll get some Olicity goodness. Now, in previous seasons that hasn't always happened, obviously but because those moments were so great when they did happen and there was other stuff to keep me interested while I waited for those moments, I just kept coming back. That's my idea of shipper heaven. It's really, really hard to have the same thrill with two characters once they are actually together, at least for me. The experience changes once they are together. It's not necessarily a bad thing but for me, the wanting and yearning and rooting for any little bit of positive stuff for your couple is what I live for. I just eat it up with a spoon. I could have watched Mulder and Scully dance around each other forever, thrilling over every little forward step they made. To me, it's like Christmas when you were a kid. The anticipation almost killed you and the excitement of possibilities just burbled up inside of you constantly. When Christmas actually came and you'd opened your presents, there was a certain amount of letdown afterwards. Not because your presents weren't awesome and you didn't love them, but because all those delicious possibilities were gone because the reality was realized. It's pretty hard for reality to outdo fantasy, all those 'what if' possibilities as you edge towards your final destination. **

**So, to that end, that's why I write these kinds of fics. I get it that it is most likely frustrating as hell to read them but for me, that lure, that promise of what the next chapter might hold keeps me coming back for more. An-tic-i-pation! as Dr Frank N Furter would say/sing, that's what it's all about for me. The tease, the dance, the 'maybe this time' thrill, it never gets old for me. Now, having extolled the virtue of the tease, there is one important rule – pay off. People have to feel rewarded in their faith and patience in their belief in the love between two characters. Otherwise it's just a rip. Unlike the actual show where we're not guaranteed Olicity are end game, in this story you can relax because you know they are. I hope that makes waiting a little easier. And if not… hmm… well, I don't know what to tell you. Maybe take a couple of weeks off this fic and come back and read it all at once? Sedation? Offer me your first born child to secretly send you all the chapters I've written at once? Actually, don't do that last one – Hank has a court order that means he can't be within 100 feet of anyone under four feet due to some unpleasantness at last year's local town production of "Snow White and the 9 Dwarves" (there were some casting issues with the dwarves, they don't handle rejection well and are surprisingly packing quite a lot of heat during auditions. They should have still been carrying said weaponry on stage and then maybe Hank wouldn't have got the jump on so many of them. Let's just say next year there might be a problem sourcing any dwarves… and possibly a Snow White although the plaster comes off soon and we're all hopeful that she'll come good… eventually… there is nothing in the books that say Snow White has to have both big toes, right?) **

**Anyways, the chapter… have at it… and I will sneak in a little apology for the soap opera-esque vibe to all the angst…**

**CHAPTER THIRTY TWO**

Oliver didn't look up as he heard Diggle's footsteps on the concrete floor. He was sitting on his small bunk bed, back against the wall, knees pulled up to his chest. Oliver's arms sat limply on his knees, head hanging down.

The footsteps stopped in front of his cell. "I've got good news, Oliver."

Oliver didn't look up.

"Your blood work has come back completely normal. It looks like the antidote has done its thing."

Oliver gave a small nod of his head, still concentrating on staring at his knees. "Okay."

"That means you're free to get out of here," Diggle prompted him. "You know, smell fresh air again."

"What day is it?" asked Oliver in disinterest.

"Sunday." There was a quick pause as Diggle checked his watch. "Just gone six o'clock. You want to go and grab some dinner?"

Oliver shook his head. "No. I'm not hungry."

There was the sound of the cell door being unlocked and Diggle walking towards him. "You know, for a guy who spent the last couple of days doing his level best to get out of this place, you don't seem as enthusiastic to leave as I thought you would be." The bed dipped a little under Diggle's weight as he came to sit beside Oliver. "It's okay, Oliver. All of your hormone levels are back to normal again. You haven't had an outburst for nearly twenty-four hours now. You're through the worst of it."

"Okay," he said dully. Oliver's bouts of mania had lessened over the last couple of days and the mists had finally cleared but what he was left seeing with his newfound clarity wasn't making him happy.

"You're not a danger to yourself and others anymore. Particularly not Felicity."

Oliver's jaw hardened. "Aren't I?"

"Now what is that supposed to mean?"

Oliver finally looked up, muscle ticking in his cheek. "This all started because I got too cocky and went into that warehouse not fully prepared. I was the reason that I got gassed and started this whole nightmare."

"The reason you got gassed was because there was an insane woman trying to make mindless minions out of people and you tried to stop her." Diggle gave him a pointed look. "You're not the bad guy in all of this."

"I pushed you off a cliff," said Oliver darkly.

"Yes, you did," said Diggle calmly. "Is there some kind of workplace incident paperwork I should be filling out for HR over that one?"

"You weren't on the clock," said Oliver flatly, appreciating Diggle's attempt at levity but not really in the mood right then.

"With you, Oliver, I'm always on the clock."

Oliver's jaw hardened, knowing that was true. He looked away.

"Okay, enough with the guilt thing," said Diggle firmly. "I'm not interested in being a part of your shame spiral. What happened, happened. It's done and we all walked away from it in the end, that's all that matters."

"I tried to kill you, John," said Oliver harshly. "You're telling me you don't have any feelings about that?" It still made him sick to think about how close he'd come to ending this good man's life.

"I think any half-way decent friendship should be able to absorb a few homicidal attempts on your life," said Diggle philosophically. "And breaking up the occasional sex dream."

Oliver screwed up his face. "I'm sorry about that."

"We both are and let's leave it at that and never reference it again, okay?"

Oliver stared at Diggle. "Don't make this easy for me," he said unhappily. "I don't deserve it."

"Oliver, no shame spiraling, remember. I don't want to get sucked into your vortex of guilt. It's pretty crowded in there already."

Oliver leant his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

"I'm not holding anything against you," said Diggle firmly. "Which means you don't get to hold anything against yourself when it comes to me. Thems the rules."

Oliver opened his eyes and looked back at Diggle. "I appreciate that, John," he said quietly. "I only hope other people are going to feel the same way."

"By other people you mean, Felicity?"

Oliver looked away abruptly.

"Felicity isn't going to forgive you because I know for a fact she doesn't think there is anything to forgive."

"You didn't see Felicity's face." Oliver swallowed hard. "She was terrified, Diggle and I was the reason why." He could still picture the expression on Felicity's face the last time they were together. She'd looked up at him in abject terror, tears running down her pale cheeks. It was an image Oliver couldn't shake. He felt physically sick at just the thought of it. Oliver shook his head. "She'll never want to be near me again."

"That's not true," said Diggle firmly. "I've had a hell of a time keeping her away these last couple of days. Felicity's been very worried about you, Oliver."

"That's because she's a good and kind person," said Oliver unhappily. "But how is she meant to turn up every day and look at the face of the man who terrorized her?" Once the fog had started to lift for Oliver it had been all he'd been able to think about. As his right mind returned, Oliver had realized that what he put Felicity through had to be the point of no return for her. It didn't matter that she was worried about him. Of course she would be, because that was the kind of person she was. But now that Felicity had seen his darkest of sides, how was she ever going to trust him again? Feel safe with him again?

"I think Felicity is a lot tougher than you give her credit for," said Diggle knowingly.

Oliver made a frustrated sound and stood up. "But I don't want Felicity to have to be tough. I don't want her to end up scarred and broken like me and I definitely don't want to be the reason either of those things happen to her."

Diggle just gave him a calm look. "So, what's your plan? Wrap Felicity in cotton wool? Lock her away in a hermetically sealed room so life can't touch her in anyway?" He folded his arms in front of his chest. "I'm telling you now, man, she is not going to thank you for that."

"I don't need her to thank me, I just need her to be safe," said Oliver tightly.

"You know, after all you've been through these last couple of days, I should cut you some slack on that last statement." Diggle paused. "But I'm not going to. Do you really think you don't need Felicity to think of you as her hero?"

Oliver scowled. "That isn't true."

"You want to be her white knight in green leathers."

"What, you think I want Felicity in danger just so I can save her?" asked Oliver in outrage. "You are way off, Diggle!"

"I'm not saying that," said Diggle evenly. "I'm saying you need Felicity to think well of you. Her opinion of Oliver Queen matters to you, way more than you're prepared to admit."

"You want an admission?" asked Oliver angrily. "What I want is for Felicity to love me the way I love her but that can never happen now!" His statement hung between them.

Diggle arched an eyebrow. "You love Felicity?"

"Yes." Out of all the confusion of the last few days, it was the one thing Oliver knew was real. Everything else had been chaff burned up in the cleansing of his system with the anti-toxin but his feelings for Felicity had remained. Unburnished by the purge and clearer and sharper than ever before and Oliver was in agony because it. He clenched his hands into slightly shaking fists. "I told Felicity I loved her and then made her fear for her life. How are we meant to come back from that?" That was the question which had been haunting him. Oliver had been battling a very real fear that he'd ruined things between the two of them forever and he wasn't coping very well with the idea of losing Felicity.

They'd blamed the toxin for his mania to keep Felicity by his side but the truth was, Oliver did need Felicity in his life, had done for a long time now. That was crystal clear to him now. Before it had been a vaguely acknowledged possibility, that he couldn't really call his life without Felicity's presence in it but now Oliver new it as a divine truth. He'd started falling for her the first day they met and he was still falling, deeper and deeper into love with a woman unlike anyone else he'd ever known. The thought of losing Felicity from his life made Oliver feel physically sick and it was a horrible feeling to know there was nothing he could do to prevent it if that was what Felicity wanted. Oliver didn't do well at being helpless but that was what he was when it came to Felicity… completely and utterly helpless.

Diggle was looking at him with interest. "I'm not going to lie, Oliver, a little bit of your love goes a long way apparently."

Oliver's eyes narrowed. "This isn't funny, Diggle."

"And you'll notice I'm not laughing." He cocked his head. "Did you mean that, about loving Felicity?"

"Yes. It took being poisoned to force me to be honest about my feelings but that's the truth of it." Oliver gave a hopeless shrug of his shoulders. "I love Felicity. I'm_ in_ love with her but how can she ever really trust me again? I nearly killed her." Flashbacks of Felicity running from him in the rain, hers cries that he was hurting her. Oliver's stomach turned over violently. He hated himself so much in that moment.

"Oliver, you threw yourself off a cliff to protect her," Diggle reminded him. "I think Felicity knows you'd do anything to protect her."

"She also knows the kind of monster which lurks inside of me," said Oliver morosely. "What woman could ever truly love someone with that kind of darkness?"

"We all have our demons, Oliver," said Diggle firmly. "You didn't corner the market and loving someone and opening up to them is terrifying and nerve wracking but it's the only way to have real intimacy between two people. Yes, Felicity might not be able ultimately handle what she's seen the last few days—"

Oliver looked away sharply. It was one thing to think those words in your head but another entirely to hear someone like Diggle say them. It was just too painful.

"But then she may take it all in her stride." Diggle gave him a pointed look. "You know, like every other curve ball you've thrown at her in the last two years."

"This time is different," said Oliver unsteadily. "I remember everything… everything I put Felicity through and-and…" Oliver shook his head. He remembered every moment of their time together. Oliver remembered the kisses, his passionate declarations of love and he remembered Felicity's quiet returning of them. Had she only said that she loved him to humor him, to keep him calm? What had been going through Felicity's head when he basically forced her to be intimate with him? It had felt so natural and right to him at the time but he was in love with Felicity, so that made sense. Oliver was desperate to know how Felicity truly felt about everything that had happened between them but then was he really ready to hear her take back her confessions of love?

"My point is that ultimately, if you're in this all the way, then you have to let Felicity have a say in all of this. Stop living in your head and talk to the woman." Diggle stood up. "But not tonight. I think you should take a moment and think about what it really is you want from her."

_Everything. _

The word was on the tip of Oliver's tongue. He wanted everything Felicity had to give. Every stupid, romantic cliché, Oliver wanted it all. Even with Laurel he'd never gotten to this point, despite loving her for so long. With Felicity it was like he was reborn into someone else completely, someone he didn't really recognize but Oliver liked him a whole lot better than the selfish idiot who'd pursued Laurel. The reality was that Oliver liked who he was when he was with Felicity, he was a better man but he really didn't know if Felicity could claim the same thing. How could she? His world was so dark and she was nothing but light. "I know I don't deserve Felicity," said Oliver with quiet honesty. "I know I shouldn't love her but I can't stop. I tried to ignore how I felt about her but I can't anymore." Oliver stopped short of actually articulating what he wanted from Felicity, worried that it might sound to Diggle like he was still under the influence of the XR-320. The gas had only taken away his self-imposed limitations on what he was willing to admit to when it came to Felicity. Now the admissions were out there, Oliver couldn't take them back and more importantly, didn't want to. He wanted it all when it came to Felicity, every little bit she was prepared to give but Oliver just didn't know how to make that sound like he was some kind of deranged stalker. But then, wasn't love meant to make you a little crazy? The trouble was he'd been actual crazy very recently and was it going to be too much to ask of Felicity for her to make the distinction? Another question Oliver had no answer for. "You told me to be sure about my feelings when it comes to Felicity that night at the warehouse, when this all started and I am. I'm all in but I don't know if I can ask Felicity to do the same," said Oliver unhappily. "Not after everything that has happened."

Diggle put his hand on Oliver's shoulder. "I know how important to you control is, Oliver, particularly after what just happened to you but there are simply some things in this world that aren't meant to be controlled. Take a leap of faith—"

"Not a great suggestion to a guy who just threw himself off a cliff," said Oliver dryly.

Diggle half-smiled. "You did that for the right reasons and you didn't die. Who knows, you might get lucky a second time. Anything is possible."

Oliver nodded slowly. Anything was possible… which was kind of the problem for him. There were so many ways in which this could all go horribly wrong and leave him without Felicity by his side. It was a more than depressing thought but he forced a smile to his lips for Diggle's sake and could only hope that all his fears were unfounded but that seemed like too much to hope for right then.

#

Felicity practically leapt on her phone when it rang. "Diggle, what's happened? Is Oliver alright?"

"Calm down, Felicity, everything is fine."

Felicity's shoulders sagged. "Oh, okay, that's good." Without being there to see Oliver with her own eyes she'd been imagining all kinds of horrors.

"In fact he's just left for home."

"By himself?" fretted Felicity.

"I put him in a cab. He said he needed some alone time. We have been joined at the hip for the last couple of days."

"I know what that's like," said Felicity and even she heard the note of wistfulness in her voice. Okay, so there had been some scary moments in those couple of days but the memory of Oliver declaring his love to her and being so doting with her were ones Felicity knew she'd treasure for the rest of her life. Even if it would probably break her heart. "Is-is he really okay, Diggle?" She started to pace up and down. "I mean physically and well, you know, everything else?" What really Felicity really wanted to ask Diggle was if he was still claiming to be in love with her. She knew it was wrong of her but Felicity wanted that, even though it meant Oliver wasn't completely cured. Her heart warred with her head over that particular issue.

"He's doing the guilt thing but that is Oliver's go to emotion when it comes to people he cares about getting hurt," said Diggle easily. "He'll process it all and be fine, I promise, Felicity."

She couldn't help but wonder just what else Oliver would be processing. Felicity gnawed on her thumbnail as she paced. "Does Oliver… ah… does he remember everything that happened?"

"Claims to."

Felicity felt her cheeks heat with a blush. "Everything, everything?" she asked unsteadily. Like her seeing him naked, their impromptu make out sessions, their conversation about her ass? Felicity's blush deepened. Oh God, Oliver must be dreading seeing her again.

"He didn't mention two everythings but he seemed pretty sure. Said it was like it was engraved on his memory forever."

The color left Felicity's cheeks as abruptly stopped pacing. "Oh good," she said weakly. "At least we know there hasn't been any brain damage." That was the only upside Felicity could find in Diggle's revelation.

"No, everything seems intact up there." Felicity could hear the smile in Diggle's voice as he continued. "At least, as much as it ever was."

She appreciated Diggle trying to lighten the mood but seeing as Felicity felt like her world was closing in on her, that really wasn't possible. What was Oliver thinking about her if he remembered how far she'd let things get between them physically? It could have been a lot further but it still hadn't exactly been nothing. Did he feel like she'd taken advantage of him? Felicity had to swallow a groan. Seeing him again was going to be a nightmare… but it was still all Felicity could think about. "Do you think he's up to visitors tonight?"

"I'd give it until tomorrow. Both of you get some rest and you'll have clear heads when you do see one another."

Felicity fought back a semi-hysterical laugh at that statement. Since when did she ever have a clear head about anything to do with Oliver Queen? "Okay," she said unevenly, "good plan." Felicity hated the idea of another day without seeing Oliver but then, considering her state of mind, that was how she knew it most likely was a good idea. "I've organized the office so that nobody is expecting us until Wednesday, anyways. I told people we're still out of town on business. We're in New York. Hopefully when we are back at the office, most of our bumps and bruises will be gone otherwise I don't know what we're going to be telling people"

"We'll tell them we've been in a car accident," said Diggle pragmatically. "You know, because we were."

Felicity blinked, realizing that was true although to her it currently felt more like a train wreck. "Good point. As cover stories go, I never really think of the truth these days."

Diggle gave a little laugh. "Yeah, it's not usually our go to with keeping our other lives a secret from our normal lives but hey, let's go with it while we can."

Felicity closed her eyes. "Thank you, Diggle, for everything. You've been amazing throughout this whole thing. Oliver and I wouldn't be alive without you… and Roy for that matter."

"The kid came through in the end," agreed Diggle. "And you can't fault his loyalty… even if he seems to be going for the Guinness book of records for freak deaths in his vicinity."

Felicity grimaced. "I feel so bad that people died because of all this."

"The guard was unfortunate but he chose a life on the wrong side of the law, so, he knew what he was getting into," said Diggle philosophically. "And don't you waste a drop of sympathy for Lyla Coates. She got off easy in my opinion. That woman deserved a lot more of a painful, slow death then she got. Coates caused a lot of pain and suffering and the world is a better place without her, trust me."

"I guess," said Felicity reluctantly.

"Stop worrying, Felicity. This story had a happy ending. The good guys survived. I call that a win."

Felicity wished she could agree but all she could think about was the next time Oliver saw her, he was going to take back his declarations of love. Tears stung her eyes at that thought and she was forced to swallow the sudden lump in her throat. "I know," said Felicity, valiantly trying not to break down on the phone. "Yay us."

"I'll see you tomorrow, okay? I think we all need to get together and debrief about the last few days but honestly, Felicity, stop worrying. We're over the worst of it. Everything is going to be fine now."

Felicity wished she could believe Diggle but she had this sinking feeling the worst was yet to come. "I know," she lied. "Everything is going to go back to the way it used to be." That was the best case scenario and right then it was all Felicity could hope for. Every other option was too depressing for words. "Thanks, John. I'll see you soon." They hung up and Felicity was left standing in the middle of her living room, staring blankly at the wall in front of her. There was this driving need in her to make contact with Oliver. Her hand tightened on her phone as she willed herself to take Diggle's good advice and wait until tomorrow.

The only thing was, even though it was good advice, Felicity's need to know for herself that Oliver really was alright was nearly overwhelming. She wondered idly when she lost that self-preservation instinct. Obviously her heart was going to be broken the next time she saw Oliver but even knowing that, Felicity felt like one of those infamous moths to a flame. You knew that you were flying to your doom but all that mattered was the brilliant, shining light in front of you. The compulsion to be as close to possible to that mesmerizing light was all you could think about. You simply didn't care that you were going to burst into flames in the process. Felicity looked at the phone in her hand, battling the temptation to throw all caution to the wind. It was too hard.

Felicity abruptly swung around and rushed into the kitchen, needing to remove the temptation before she did something else she was going to regret. Desperately looking around the kitchen, Felicity ultimately grabbed out a canister of flour and threw her phone into it before sealing the lid up and shoving the container back into her pantry. She then hurried back over to the sofa and took a seat. Okay, temptation removed. Felicity put her hands on her knees and willed herself to calm down. She was going to be strong about this. It was one more sleep until she could talk to Oliver again. That was nothing, she could totally do this. Felicity cast an anxious look over towards the kitchen before catching herself and looking straight ahead. She grabbed for the remote and turned the TV on, hoping there was something on which would distract her from this overwhelming need to make contact with Oliver again… like news of the Apocalypse. Who was she kidding, even that wouldn't be enough of a distraction for her right now.

**A/N****: I know, I know, you're all emitting a scream of frustration that is setting off every dog in the neighborhood. Will it make you feel any better if I tell you contact is made in the next chapter? A chapter I will most likely post tomorrow if the frustration level is high enough… but as always with this story and as in life – careful what you wish for. **

**Hmm… that sounded particularly ominous, didn't it? Wasn't technically meant to be but it just kind of slipped through the cracks… that's what she said. I warned you this chapter was very soap opera-ish and to be honest, there is a lot more where that came from… and I mean a lot! This is all the emotional groundwork which has to be covered and cross-purposes and misunderstanding which go on and make up typical soap opera fare. Although, and this is the basket I'm putting all of my eggs into, a lot of classic stories are based around that exact premise, so, fingers crossed, there is an audience for it. Otherwise this story could get very lonely for me, just posting out into the abyss. **

**Let's hope it doesn't come to that, eh? **

**So yeah, if you're like Olicity and really can't stand this separation any longer, let me know and I'll see about getting that next chapter to you sooner rather than later… :D **


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N****: I had fun writing this chapter. It has a scene in it that I pictured right back at the beginning of the story, the end scene. I tend to have different scenes for a story anchored in my brain when I start and then just flesh out around them how to get me there. The last scene in this chapter is one of those and even though it didn't turn out quite like I wanted, I think it gets the job done and I hope it will be the same for you. **

**For those worrying about brooding Oliver hanging for around for too long, don't. ;) Basically, he's going through all this to grow and evolve and that's where I'm planning on taking him. So, a bit of something who want to see some man angst and something for people who want to see a little bit of a different Oliver coming up. **

**One of my guest reviewers asked how long this story was going to be. I'm usually shocking at estimating these things but I'm going to say around 46 chapters, certainly no more than 50, particularly if I'm planning the sequel which hopefully will still happen. I'll see how the muse is going. **

**So, thank you to everyone who let me know they needed more movement in this story, this chapter is for you. :D Although that movement might be sideways, at best…**

**CHAPTER THIRTY THREE**

Oliver walked into his home and stopped in the foyer. Unbidden his gaze drifted over to the kitchen and he couldn't help but remember the last time he'd been standing there, in his dreams. Felicity had been there, they were married and she was pregnant with his child. Oliver's hand involuntarily clenched. Only none of that had actually happened. It seemed like a cruel twist of fate that even his dreams over the last few days were still etched into his memory in stark relief. In fact, they felt almost as real as what had actually unfolded. The mansion felt particularly empty to him in that moment, without his wife there waiting for him. Oliver knew that was a vaguely manic thought because he and Felicity weren't married, weren't even close to it but he couldn't help himself. Could you really miss something this much when you never had it in the first place?

"Forgotten your way around the place?"

Oliver turned around at the teasing question and gave a lopsided smile at his sister as she strolled into the foyer. "Hey Speedy."

The smile dropped from Thea's face when she saw his face. "Oh my God, what happened, Ollie?"

Oliver realized he must still look pretty banged up. He hadn't thought about it, not having looked in a mirror for days. "It's nothing," he said quickly.

Thea walked up to him and put a concerned hand to his cheek. "It doesn't look like nothing. What happened?"

"I was in a car accident." It wasn't a complete lie. "I'm fine, just some bumps and bruises."

"Was Felicity with you? Is she okay?"

Such a good question and Oliver really wished he knew the answer to that. "Yes, she's fine," he said a little hoarsely. Diggle had repeatedly reassured him that she was physically fine but until Oliver could see that for himself, he couldn't stop himself from worrying. And that was before Oliver even started on worrying about Felicity's emotional and psychological state.

"Not quite the romantic getaway you were hoping for, huh?" said Thea sympathetically.

_If only she knew_. Oliver forced a wry smile to his lips. "Not exactly."

"Well, as long as you're both okay, I guess that's the most important thing."

Oliver gave a small nod of his head. "Absolutely." He looked her over. "Are you on your way in or the way out?"

"Out. I usually try and be at the club by eight." Thea cocked her head. "But I can go in later, if you're looking for some company."

Oliver smiled, touched by her concern. "No, that's alright. I'm pretty beat. I don't think I'd be much fun to hang out with. You go. I'm going to grab something to eat and then hit the hay."

"You're such a playboy these days," she teased him.

"I know, I got boring in my old age."

Thea gave a little laugh and went up on her toes, kissing him on the cheek. "I'm glad you're back."

"I'm glad I'm back too," he said a little unevenly. Thea didn't know it but her words had more than one meaning. Back from the brink but what exactly was he returning to? Oliver knew he wasn't going to feel like he was home again until he sorted out things with Felicity but if that didn't go well… Oliver didn't even want to complete that thought.

"I'll see you tomorrow. Don't wait up."

"Be safe," he cautioned her as he watched her leave.

"Always," said Thea cheerfully and then she was gone and Oliver was alone again.

He gave a heavy sigh, unable to decide what he wanted to do next. Oliver knew what he really wanted to do. Turn around, get in his car and drive over to Felicity's but Diggle's words of caution were still ringing in his ears. It was probably better to wait until tomorrow, when Felicity would be feeling fresher and hopefully more inclined to forgive. His stomach rumbled, reminding Oliver it had been a while since he'd last eaten. He headed into the kitchen and made himself a sandwich before sitting down at the kitchen table. Oliver took a bite of his sandwich, gaze drifting down to the table top. Without thinking about it, he put a hand on the smooth, wooden surface. Memories of his dream assaulted him. How he'd lifted a nearly naked Felicity up onto this very table top before finding his place between her legs, those same legs wrapping their way around his waist. Oliver's fingers splayed as he pictured Felicity's luscious backside occupying the space his hand was now caressing. The way she'd pressed her body up against his, the taste of her in his mouth. It hadn't actually happened but it felt incredibly real to him. Painfully so. He squirmed a little in his seat as blood flow was redirected south of the border even as he remembered dream Felicity's promise to make him sweat. Oliver's other hand tightened on his sandwich, basically squishing it in two. Tomato and cold cuts fell out onto the table and Oliver grimaced. "Damn it," he muttered in irritation. Mainly because the sandwich was interrupting his day dreams more than actual concern over the mess he'd just made. He was picking up bits of lettuce and tomato from the table top when his cell phone rang with a text. Oliver grabbed for his phone distractedly and then froze when he saw who the text was from.

Felicity.

He quickly opened it.

_Hi. _

The single word sat there, staring back at the wide-eyed Oliver. There wasn't enough information. Oliver didn't know what kind of hi that was. He swallowed hard and then texted back with vaguely shaking fingers.

_Hi. _

Oliver's eyes bored a hole into his cell phone screen, waiting for Felicity's next words. It felt like eons passed before the next message popped up but it was probably only a couple of seconds.

_How r u feeling?_

Oliver blinked. Of course Felicity was going to ask that. He wanted to reassure her properly but wasn't sure there were enough words in the English language to set her mind at ease after what he'd put her through.

_Better. U? _

_I'm good. _

Oliver's stomach turned over on itself nervously as he tried to work out what to say next. Felicity had texted him, not rung him. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? If she'd wanted to talk properly she would have rung, so maybe this was a bad sign. But then again, if she really hated him right now, why contact him at all? Oliver just didn't know and the not knowing was driving him crazy.

_Don't come into work tomorrow. Said we r in NY til wed _

Oliver's shoulders sagged. He'd hoped to have a reason to see Felicity tomorrow, one that didn't put her on the spot. And he really didn't want to talk about work right then.

_OK_

Oliver stared at his phone, waiting for the next text.

_Want to do banana tomorrow? _

He blinked, not knowing what that meant.

_Shoot, brunch, sorry_

Oliver smiled, feeling a surge of relief.

_Yes. Where?_

_Café Cocoa's? At 10. _

It was on the other side of town to where Queen Consolidated was located, less likely anyone would see them. It was also a very popular place, lots of people all the time. Oliver wondered if that was a deliberate choice on Felicity's behalf. She wanted a lot of people around her because she didn't feel safe alone with him. Oliver grimaced, hating the thought of that but he was going to take seeing Felicity anyway he could get it.

_Sure, sounds good. _

There was a long pause and Oliver stared at his phone, willing Felicity not to go just yet. It was the first contact he'd had with her in nearly three days and he was desperate for more but he didn't want to come across as though he was still this frantic guy jonesing to be around her… even though that pretty much was the case. "Don't go," he muttered, "talk to me."

_What r u doing?_

Oliver blew out a relieved breath, quickly texting back.

_Eating dinner. _

_Me too. What's on the menu?_

_Sandwich. U?_

Oliver could do banal conversation, as long as they were talking, he was going to take that as a good sign.

_Penis pasta but my cock just jizzed all over me. I need 2 stop playing with it so much_

Oliver's eyes widened at that last text.

_OMG no! Penne pasta, not penis! And my coke fizzed._ _Not the other thing._

Oliver grinned, his first real smile in what felt like a long time.

_Stupid autocucumber_

_Autoerection _

_Damn it! Autocorrection! I'm having pasta. It was all I had in my panties. _

_Pantry! Why autocucumber, why? _

Oliver burst out laughing. God but he loved this woman. How had he managed to pretend otherwise for so long?

_Oh God, I just want to curl up and dildo now._

_Duck. I want 2 dick!_

_Die. I want to die. Kiss me._

_Kill me. _

Oliver's shoulders where shaking so hard from laughing so as he texted back to her. He knew Felicity would be mortified.

_LOL _

What Oliver had really wanted to say was about taking her up on that offer of kissing her, right now and he'd be at her place in fifteen minutes. But he knew that was an impossibility with the state of their relationship in such a delicate balance. He'd already freaked her out with the intensity of his feelings, pushing for things to go further between them at this juncture would most likely only send Felicity screaming in the other direction and that was the last thing Oliver wanted.

_Sorry. My flap is covered in fur_

Oliver put his hand to his mouth, feeling the enormous stupid grin there. He could just picture Felicity blushing violently and scrambling to undo her faux paus.

_My phone is covered in flour. _

That still didn't make sense to Oliver but he didn't care. He was just addicted to this wonderful woman and every amazing, quirky and brilliant thing she did. There was no way to get enough of her.

_I'm just off to put my head in my ovary now. _

_Oven. _

Oliver gave another laugh and texted back.

_Please don't, you'll miss brunch tomorrow_

_Might be a good thing_

Oliver immediately became more serious, not wanting to jeopardize their first meeting.

_No it wouldn't be_

He stared at the screen, wondering if that had been too pushy of him. Oliver needed Felicity to know she was setting the pace between them, that she felt comfortable and safe around him. Which was vaguely problematic because the whole time he was fighting this near overwhelming urge to go to her house and declare his undying love for her. The trouble being, that is what had gotten them into this predicament in the first place. Oliver knew he had to let Felicity come around in her own time but all this waiting was killing him slowly. It was so ironic. He was the one who'd been purposely putting the brakes on anything happening between them but now, when he'd finally come to his senses, it was Felicity who was slowing things down. All Oliver could do was pray that was all it was going to be, rather than a dead stop or even a reverse. He wasn't really sure how he'd handle either of those things beyond not very well. Finally Felicity sent a return text.

_Ok CU then_

There was so much more Oliver wanted to say but Felicity had already hung up. Oliver gave a little groan, caught between elation at his first contact with Felicity since things had gone so badly and frustrated that it was over already. Plus, there were the nerves which had already set in about tomorrow. Oliver had no way of knowing what it was Felicity would say to him tomorrow. She could be intending to hand in her resignation for all he knew. Oliver's hand tightened on his phone at just the thought of such a horror. He wasn't going to let Felicity pull away from him but he was going to have to not frighten her in the process. This called for delicacy and diplomacy. Oliver gave a grunt.

He was screwed.

#

Felicity gave a low moan and let her head drop heavily to the table top she was sitting at, narrowing missing her bowl of pasta. Her head made a muffled clunking sound at the impact. "Ow," she mumbled, welcoming the pain as a distraction from her embarrassment. Still face down on the table, Felicity lamented her incredible stupidity. Had she really just sent Oliver texts with the words 'penis' and 'erection' in them? Was there a bigger idiot on the planet? There couldn't be. This was why she should have just left her phone in that canister of flour, where it was safe and she couldn't make a complete idiot of herself. But, her willpower hadn't been enough to stop herself. She'd needed to make some kind of contact with Oliver, it was beyond her control and texting had seemed like a low risk way of her blurting out something too telling to him, like she was in love with him. It was just as well she'd chosen a public place for their first meeting. If this first contact was anything to go by, it was her only hope of not making an even bigger fool of herself by bursting into tears when Oliver tried to gently let her down by retracting his 'I love you's'. With so many people around, Felicity knew she'd do her best to hold it together and not embarrass herself further. At least, that was the plan.

#

Oliver sat at the table for two in Café Coco's and found himself sending yet another furtive glance out the window scanning the passing crowd for a familiar blonde ponytail but was again disappointed. He flicked a look at his watch and it registered that it was two minutes after he last looked at it. Oliver had arrived almost thirty minutes early to the café, needing some time to compose himself. It was now nearly an hour later and there was still no sign of Felicity. He looked down at his cell phone which was sitting out on the table top, his right leg jiggling nervously. Oliver became aware of his wayward leg and put a hand on it, determinedly stopping it from its jittery action. The wait was killing him. He just didn't know what Felicity was going to say to him when they first talked face to face and the not knowing was slowly driving Oliver insane. Which was the last thing he wanted to portray to Felicity. Oliver needed Felicity to know that he was perfectly alright and in control of his right mind after all that had happened. The trouble being, he was so damn nervous right then, he wasn't sure what would tumble out of his mouth. Letting Felicity set the pace on this thing between them was already taking a toll on him and they hadn't even technically started. That didn't bode well.

Oliver fidgeted anxiously in his seat. Where was she? Had Felicity come to her senses and realized that she didn't want anything more to do with him, not even to say goodbye? Oliver couldn't blame her if she had but there was no way he was going to accept it. What was that saying, if you loved someone, let them go? Screw that. He'd done that with Laurel because Oliver knew deep down they'd never really make each other happy. With Felicity it was different. Oliver just had this sharp awareness that they were meant to be. After fighting such a concept for the last couple of years, it was this strange kind of relief to just give into the inevitable. He'd known that first time he'd met Felicity that he was going to fall in love with her but he'd just refused to acknowledge that kind of possibility. His life had been so full of baggage and distractions that it had been easy to bury those feelings but now they'd grown to such an extent that Oliver knew there was no way he could ignore anything when it came to Felicity. And he wasn't going to let Felicity ignore it either. He just had to find a way to do that which wouldn't make Felicity feel like he was pressuring her into something she wasn't ready for yet… without taking no for an answer. That was going to be a fine line to walk.

"Would you like another cup of coffee?"

Oliver looked up to see the attractive brunette waitress smiling down at him. He looked at his nearly empty cup of coffee and grimaced. "No, that's fine, thanks. I think I should probably stop at three. I'm getting a little jumpy."

The woman gave a tinkering laugh. "Well, we wouldn't want that, would we?" She looked at him expectantly. "Would you like to order something from the menu now?"

"I'm waiting on my friend," said Oliver quickly. "She'll be here any moment."

"She's running late?" asked the woman sympathetically.

Oliver gave a crooked smile. "Best case scenario, yes," he said unevenly. All the other scenarios weren't worth thinking about.

The waitress picked up his empty cup and placed a paper napkin down on the table, with a phone number written neatly on it. She gave Oliver a knowing smile. "In case you get tired of waiting," she said huskily and then with a last lingering look, she sauntered off.

Oliver looked down at the number on the napkin and resisted the urge to scrunch it up right there and then. Never piss off the people who have anything to do with your food. He'd learnt that the hard way years ago but that still didn't mean he had any intention of ever calling the woman. There was only one woman Oliver had any kind of interest in and she was currently over half an hour late to meet him. Oliver frowned, starting to get genuinely worried now that something might have happened to Felicity. It wasn't like her to run late like this, that was more of his thing and even if she'd decided against meeting him, Oliver knew Felicity would have texted him or let him know somehow. She didn't have a cruel bone in her body. Oliver picked up his phone, breaking his promise to himself that he'd let Felicity take the lead in going forward between them. He was about to dial when the phone rang in his hand and Oliver actually gave a little start, not having been expecting it. Felicity's name flashed up on the screen and he swallowed hard, willing his heart rate to slow down so he appear a lot calmer than he felt.

"Felicity?" his voice cracked a little over her name and Oliver quickly cleared his throat. "Hi." He steeled himself for whatever Felicity was about to say, already coming up with what he hoped were rational arguments for her not to cancel their date.

"Oh Oliver, hi," said Felicity unevenly. "I'm so sorry, I meant to call you sooner."

Oliver immediately sat up straighter in his chair, hearing the distraction in her voice. "Felicity, what's wrong?"

"I-I ah can't make it to brunch, I'm sorry."

Oliver's hand tightened on his phone. This was his worst nightmare. Felicity couldn't even bare to see him, even though this had been her idea. Clearly when it came to the reality of facing him after everything that had happened, Felicity had been unable to go through with it. Oliver's stomach churned. "Are you alright?" he asked hoarsely. There was a long pause during which Oliver was pretty certain he didn't take a single breath.

"I-it's my mom," blurted out Felicity, sounding like she was on the verge of tears. "She's been in a really bad car accident and I can't get anyone to give me a straight answer and I don't know what's happening with her," said Felicity, words tumbling over the top of each other. "She's in surgery now, there is a problem with her spine, I think but it sounds really, really bad, Oliver. I'm so scared. I know my mom and I have issues but she's my mom, you know and I can't-I can't lose her—" Felicity voice trailed off and it sounded as though she was crying.

Oliver leant forward, his tone full of urgency. "Felicity, where are you? I'm coming over." It was all he could think about. He could hear the fear in Felicity's voice and knew what it was to face down the possibility and the reality of the death of a parent.

"I-I'm at the airport," said Felicity shakily. "They've just called my flight to board. I'm going to Las Vegas, my mom is at the Desert Spring Hospital so I'm going directly there. I got the call a couple of hours ago and I've been trying to organize a flight since. I'm sorry, Oliver, but I've got to go."

"Felicity," he said helplessly, "what can I do? What do you need me to do?"

"Can-can I have a few days off work?" she asked tentatively. "I don't know how long I'm going to be in Las Vegas if I have to wait for mom to recuperate or-or—"

Felicity didn't complete that sentence but Oliver knew she was trying not to say organize a funeral. "Take as long as you need," said Oliver without hesitation. "Don't worry about anything here, just go to your mom. And call me if you need anything, anything at all."

"Thank you," she said, sounding genuinely grateful. "I'm so sorry for all the drama—"

"You don't ever have to apologize for drama, Felicity," said Oliver intently. "Not with the amount I bring into your life. Just take care of yourself and your mom and call me to let me know you got in safe, okay?"

"Okay," said Felicity, still sounding like she was shaking. "I'll talk to you soon but I've really got to go now. They're calling my name and I can't miss this flight."

"Go," he urged her, "have a safe trip."

"I will."

And then she was gone.

Oliver sagged back in his chair, still trying to process what had just happened. Felicity sounded completely freaked out and he couldn't blame her. The mortality of your parents was something that was impossible to prepare for. Oliver hated feeling this helpless. He needed to do something to make this better for Felicity but there was nothing he could do. Oliver threw the phone on the table and ran his hand through his hair. It just seemed to be one trauma after another for Felicity and Oliver would have done anything to try and take those ordeals away from her but he couldn't. Oliver pulled a face and could only hope Felicity made it to Las Vegas in time. He looked around the crowded café, suddenly at a loss over what to do next. With Felicity out of town for however long, there didn't seem much point to anything all of a sudden. Oliver gave an impatient shake of his head, annoyed at his moment of self-pity. This wasn't about him, this was about Felicity and she didn't need to be worrying about him as well. Oliver made a pledge to just get on with things until Felicity got back in a few days. After all, it wouldn't be that long and he could manage a few days separation. As long as Felicity's mom was alright at the end of all this, that was the only thing which mattered. Oliver stood up and threw down some money on the table top along with a generous tip. He needed to be doing something, still full of the nervous energy over the meeting which never happened and decided he and Diggle probably should do more of a debrief about everything that happened. The key was to keep busy over the next couple of days and the time would just fly by and Felicity would be back before he knew it. And then he could go through this all over again. Oliver grimaced as he left the café. Not the happiest of thoughts but at least there would be forward motion in his relationship with Felicity because right now they were stalled, through nobody's fault. It was only going to be for a few days, Oliver reminded himself. He could absolutely do this.

**A/N****: And you thought you couldn't get any more frustrated, right? Oh you naïve innocents. **

**I don't know if you remember this but about 10 chapters back I confessed to feeling guilty about the stuff I was currently writing… well, this was the stuff. There is a point to their separation and I promise I'm not just jerking your chain without a character-driven purpose. And the separation isn't going to be for that long. If you really want to know how long it's going to be, so you can brace accordingly, then just ask and I'll reply but yeah, not long at all. :D **

**Basically I'm pretty frightened to read the reviews on this one… . **

**I may have to wait until I'm in an emotionally stronger place before attempting that… **


	34. Chapter 34

**CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR**

"I can't do this!" announced Oliver loudly into an empty room as he fossicked through the mounds of files stacked all over the floor and balanced on the nearby desktop. He had a meeting in ten minutes and he needed that file but the chances of finding it any time soon seemed pretty slim. Oliver picked up and slapped down files randomly, desperate to find what he was looking for, his temper wearing thin. After ten days separation from Felicity, everything was wearing thin on Oliver. His temper, his patience, his mental wellbeing. It wasn't that he begrudged Felicity the time with her mother, far from it. He just wished like hell that she wasn't so far away while giving that time. Not for the first time Oliver toyed with the idea of organizing for Felicity's mother to be moved to Starling City. In fact, he'd already made initial enquiries about that exact thing but had been told in no uncertain terms by her medical team that Ms. Smoak was in no condition to be moved interstate. Oliver slammed down the file he'd been looking at unnecessarily hard. He just needed to know Felicity was taking care of herself as well as her mother. She'd just been recovering from her own traumatic incident when her mother's car accident had happened and Oliver worried that Felicity wasn't up to the strain of dealing with a sick mother and hospitals so soon after her own ordeal. Oliver had been thrilled and relieved for Felicity when her mother had pulled through the surgery but there was still a long road ahead of her mother before she was back to full strength and Oliver fretted over the toil that was taking on Felicity. The last time they'd spoken she'd sounded exhausted but then sleeping in a chair beside a hospital bed does that to a person. His cell phone rang and Oliver knew it was going to be Diggle harassing him about being late to the meeting. He grabbed for it and answered it without looking at the call ID, still scrambling his way through files. "I know, okay?" Oliver snapped. "I'm on my way. I've just got to find the damn contract."

"Which one? Maybe I can help."

Oliver froze. "Felicity?" His heart literally skipped a beat at the sound of her voice.

"Yes, it's me. Have you checked in my filing cabinets? Which file is it?"

Oliver didn't give a damn about the file all of a sudden. "Ah, it's okay, never mind. It's not important. How are you?" he asked unevenly. "How's your mom?"

"She's doing better. They moved her out onto the general ward yesterday and now I'm just trying to find a rehabilitation center for her that her insurance company will pay for. Dealing with them is always a joy. But seriously, Oliver, just tell me which file you're looking for."

"You know, I just found it," lied Oliver. He didn't want to talk about files, not when there were still so many unsaid things between them.

"Oh, good. You know, my files are very organized, you shouldn't really have any trouble finding things."

Oliver looked over his shoulder at the complete and utter mess he'd made of Felicity's filing system. There would have been less chaos if a bomb had gone off in the room. Felicity must have sensed something in the way he didn't immediately respond.

"You haven't been messing with my highly efficient and organized system, have you?"

"Of course not," said Oliver quickly. Too quickly.

"Because it took me a long time to get it just right."

_Why were they still talking about files?_ "Everything is exactly how you left it, Felicity, stop worrying." Oliver eyed the leaning stacks of files which took up just about every surface of the small room, making a mental note to make sure he cleaned up before Felicity got back. "When are you coming home?" The words were out of Oliver's mouth before he could stop them. It was just a natural progression from his thoughts about the files but it was also the question constantly on his mind. Their quick conversations over the phone weren't enough for Oliver to glean exactly what was going on in Felicity's head when it came to him. They were cordial enough but Felicity was always distracted and having to end phone calls to deal with her mother or talk to a doctor. It was as frustrating as hell to Oliver but he tried not to let it show. Felicity was having to cope with enough already. She didn't need to be worrying about him. Oliver made a face, doing his best impersonation of being a grown up. "Because there is no rush," he said determinedly. "I just wanted you to know that. The most important thing is your mom right now." It didn't matter that Oliver was pretty certain he was going to lose his mind any day now from this ongoing estrangement between the two of them. Felicity couldn't ever know that because Oliver was intent on reassuring her that the crazy man from the cabin was long gone and he was in complete control of all of his faculties. Only Oliver knew he wasn't when it came to Felicity but he was hoping she wouldn't notice. It was an overly optimistic thought for his current state of mind.

"I… sure… -tact… crazy."

Oliver scowled as Felicity kept dropping in and out of service on her end. This happened a lot with their conversations. "Felicity, you're dropping out. I'm not getting what you last said."

"Hospit-… tomorrow… don't know… grapes."

Oliver wanted to scream. It was bad enough that he missed half the phone calls from Felicity because he was either in a meeting or leaping from roof top to roof top chasing down the bad guy of the hour but now when their schedules actually matched up, he still couldn't talk to her properly. He walked around the office, trying to find the sweet spot from his end so that the connection between them would be back properly. "Felicity, hello? I'm still not getting you properly."

"-nurse… rental car… roses… funeral parlor."

"What, what was that about a funeral?" asked Oliver anxiously. He climbed on top of the desk, not caring he was treading on files as he tried a last ditch effort to try and re-establish their connection. "Felicity, can you hear me?" Suddenly there was the sound of the call dropping out completely. "Damn it!" he bit out in frustration. This was completely unacceptable.

Diggle chose that moment to walk into the filing room. "There you are." He looked up at Oliver standing on the desk and arched an eyebrow. "Don't do it. You're still young and have a lot to live for."

Oliver gave a low grunt, not really in the mood for Diggle's wit right then. "Stupid phone connection," he growled. "She might as well be calling from the moon."

In a fit of renewed frustration Oliver hurled his phone hard at the opposite wall. It bounced off the wall and would have hit Diggle squarely in the face if the other man's reflexes weren't so good. Diggle deftly caught it in one hand.

Oliver scowled. "Sorry," he muttered.

"So, is this your new hobby? Throwing yourself off of things?" Diggle calmly handed the phone back to Oliver. "Because a desk feels like a little bit of a comedown from the cliff you started with."

"I was trying to get a better connection with Felicity," grumbled Oliver. He jumped down from the desk top. "I don't know what the hell is wrong with the lines in Nevada. It's like they're in the dark ages."

"One bad phone line a decline of the Roman Empire doesn't make," said Diggle laconically. "How is Felicity?"

"How should I know?" snapped Oliver. "It's not like I can have an actual conversation with her."

"Okay, Mr. Cranky Pants, I was just asking," said Diggle evenly.

Oliver grimaced, knowing he was taking his frustration out on the wrong person. "Sorry, John."

"It's okay, but you're buying lunch today," said Diggle easily. He gave him an expectant look. "You remember you have that meeting in five minutes, right?"

"I know," said Oliver in annoyance. "I can't find the file I need for it."

Diggle eyed the toppling city of files and loose pieces of paper littering the entire room. "Color me shocked to hear that. You know Felicity isn't going to be too happy when she comes back and sees the state of her filing system. You know how protective she gets about her systems."

"_If_ she comes back," said Oliver morosely, returning to half-heartedly looking through another pile of files.

"Why wouldn't Felicity come back?"

Oliver moved his shoulders restlessly, not really wanting to talk about his deepest fears right then. "I don't know, forget I said anything."

"Look, you're obviously not handling this separation from Felicity very well—"

"I'm not still under the influence of the XR-320," said Oliver defensively. "I don't need Felicity around to survive." Unless you counted mental well-being as part of surviving. Then Oliver might not have a leg to stand on with that vehement assertion.

"Did I mention the gas?" asked Diggle mildly. "I'm just saying you clearly miss her, like I do."

Oliver found it highly unlikely that Diggle would be missing Felicity the way he was which he was actually glad about. Because if he was, then Oliver would be compelled to punch Diggle in the face, which he really didn't want to do. While his relationship with Felicity was still so undefined and tenuous, Oliver really didn't want any other man around her. He knew that sounded like he was still being influenced by the XR-320 but it wasn't like that at all. It was more acknowledging the fact that he'd always been territorial when it came to Felicity but tried to pretend otherwise. These days Oliver was just being a lot more honest with himself about a lot of things.

"Why don't you fly out to Vegas and be with her?" suggested Diggle.

"I can't," he said shortly. It wasn't like he hadn't contemplated the idea a hundred times a day since Felicity left but he always kept coming back to the same issue.

"Why not?"

"Because Felicity hasn't asked me to," said Oliver unhappily. "After what I put her through before she left I don't want her to feel like I'm forcing my presence on her again. I did enough of that after I was gassed and well, things took a bad turn—"

"I know, I still have the scars to remind me," said Diggle dryly.

"I'm not just talking about the car chase and everything," said Oliver. He made a regretful face. "There were things, at the cabin, which happened between Felicity and I and-and I'm not sure how she feels about any of it. I know I crossed lines, a lot of them and Felicity couldn't stop any of it because she was trying to keep me from going even more insane and I feel badly about that."

Diggle gave him a sharp look. "What kinds of lines?"

Oliver grimaced. "Ones Felicity shouldn't have had to deal with. The point is, I invaded a lot of her personal space and she was given no choice about it. I can't, I won't do that again to her."

Diggle pursed his lips. "Okay, I suppose that is fair enough." He looked around at the abomination Oliver had made of all of Felicity's once carefully ordered files. "Why don't you at least call down to HR and get them to send you up a temp? She could help with—"

"I don't want another assistant," snapped Oliver. "I want Felicity." He saw the way Diggle was looking at him and tried to back track. "I mean I want Felicity as my assistant because she knows what I need… from an assistant, what I need from an assistant."

"Don't bother. I think we both know exactly what you meant," said Diggle wryly. He looked down at his watch. "And now you are officially late for your meeting." Diggle half-smiled. "You know, again."

"It's not my fault," grumbled Oliver, giving up on the file. "You distracted me."

"You're distracted alright, but I'm not the reason."

"I'm not talking about this anymore." Oliver stalked out of the room. "I'm fine. Everything is fine. Now, let's just get on with it."

"Oh yeah," said Diggle mockingly as he closed the door to the filing room and followed after him. "You're a whole mess of fine. Anyone can see that."

Oliver ignored him, glad that he had an excuse of a meeting so that they didn't have to continue this conversation.

#

Felicity blew out a long breath and looked down at her phone. Another frustrating phone call to Oliver. They spent half the time leaving each other voice mail messages and the other half shouting at each other over a line which kept dropping out. It kind of felt like a perfect analogy for where their relationship actually was at… which was in a strange kind of limbo. Some days she thought Oliver really wanted her to come home but then others he seemed to go out of his way to reassure her he didn't need her. Felicity just couldn't get a bead on what he was actually thinking, not when she couldn't look him in the eye. Oliver's eyes always told her the real story but broken phone calls and voice messages and texts weren't going to cut it. Another disheartened sigh left her lips. She was tired and emotional and everything felt particularly hard to Felicity in that moment.

"Felicity?"

She turned around and forced a smile to her lips. "Hi, Doctor Yousef. How's my mom looking today?"

"She is improving very well," replied the middle aged doctor with the beginning of grey peeking through his very dark hair. "Quite my star patient."

"That's my mom," said Felicity wryly. "You can never keep her down for long."

"We do need to talk about her ongoing care and rehabilitation treatment though. Do you have a moment?"

Felicity nodded. "Of course." It was a welcome distraction from trying to work out what was going on in Oliver's head while she was halfway across the country.

#

Oliver was on his way up the stairs to his bedroom when Thea met him coming in the opposite direction. He looked up, taking in her cocktail dress and elegant up do. "You look nice."

"Well, you don't," she said disapprovingly. "Hurry up and get changed. I know you make a lifestyle out of being late but I don't like it."

"Where are we going?" he asked in consternation.

"The big charity gala," Thea prompted him. "You know the one supporting bearing arms… or arming bears, I can't remember which. Anyways, it's a big deal and I don't want to be late."

Oliver grimaced. "That's tonight?" He'd completely forgotten and it was the last thing in the world he wanted to do right then.

"Yes and you're going, so don't even think about trying to get out of it," said Thea firmly. "I can only tell people you've come down with mono, the chicken pox or the mumps a certain amount of times before they start thinking you're some kind of cesspool of diseases." She inclined her head. "Or that you're most likely sterile by now."

"I don't think my fertility comes up at these kinds of events," noted Oliver wryly.

"You'd be surprised." Thea made a shooing hand gesture. "Now go, make yourself pretty. We have to pick up Roy as well."

Oliver blew out an irritated breath. His playboy billionaire cover life was sometimes a real cross to bear.

Thea was already heading down the rest of the stairs. "And enough with the huffing and puffing. You're going, Mr. Wolf, try and be a grown up about it."

"I'm a grown up," he muttered, stalking up the stairs. "And you're not the boss of me." Even as he asserted otherwise, Oliver knew he was being childish but he didn't care. His whole life felt out of kilter and he knew that wasn't going to change until Felicity was back where she belonged… assuming she felt the same way, of course. The possibility that all this time apart was affording Felicity some perspective and she was going to decide that her life on Team Arrow was more trouble than it was worth always loomed large for Oliver as each day slipped by. And the fact he couldn't do anything about that without risking pushing her away further was a constant irritation to Oliver, rubbing away under his skin like a thorn in the flesh. Forty minutes later Oliver's mood wasn't any better as he sat in the backseat of the car with Thea, Diggle them driving them through the Glades to Roy's house. "You're going the wrong way," said Oliver irritably.

"No, I'm not," said Diggle calmly, continuing on the route he'd chosen without batting an eyelid.

"It's quicker if you go down Drysdale Street."

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is."

"There is construction going on leading up to that street, it's not quicker."

"They've finished with the construction."

"Do you know that for a fact or are you just saying that to win the argument?"

"Fact," said Oliver defiantly, definitely not in the mood to lose an argument right then, even though he had no idea.

"Try and sit closer to the window, Thea," Diggle advised the younger woman straight faced. "I'd hate for that pretty dress of yours to catch alight what with your brother's pants being on fire and all."

Thea giggled which only annoyed Oliver more. "Who works for who here?"

"I work for you, Mr. Queen, which is kind of the point. You pay me to be your driver. How about we make a deal? You don't tell me how to drive and I don't tell you how to be really, really annoying. I think we've both got a good handle on our particular vocations."

Oliver's scowl deepened. "You're fired," he snapped the empty threat at the back of Diggle's head.

"Uh ha," said Diggle, uncaringly.

"Just ignore him, Mr. Diggle," said Thea in amusement. "Ollie's been in a mood for weeks now."

"I haven't been in a mood," said Oliver in annoyance.

"He's missing his girlfriend," continued on Thea knowingly.

"No, I'm not and stop calling her that," said Oliver sharply. It wasn't the missing part Oliver was objecting to, it was the girlfriend assertion. It felt like every time Thea called Felicity that it was jinxing it somehow that it would ever really happen. He'd never been superstitious before but then, when it came to Felicity, there were a lot of firsts for him.

"I find it's best not to look him directly in the eye," said Diggle teasingly. "He sees it as a sign of aggression. Plus, no sudden movements."

"Ohh, good, I'll have to remember that," laughed Thea. "I just let him watch the sports channels at home. I think the yelling at the TV makes him feel better."

"You two think you're hysterical, don't you?" asked Oliver darkly, not appreciating them ganging up with their teasing of him.

"I think we have our moments," agreed Thea without hesitation, sharing a grin with Diggle in the rear vision mirror. "And you'd be laughing too if your panties weren't all bunched up somewhere the sun doesn't shine."

Oliver grunted and turned his attention to watching the scenery flash by, not in the mood to be teased out of his ill humor.

"Now he's really sulking," said Thea in amusement. "Tonight is going to be a complete joy."

"We can fix that, I won't go," bit out Oliver.

"Oh no, my little ray of sunshine," said Thea determinedly, "you're going and you can throw all the hissy fits you like but tonight is happening."

"You know, I've got more important things I could be doing," said Oliver sharply. "It's not like I'd have nothing to do if I skipped this stupid gala."

Thea gave him an interested look. "What other important things?"

Oliver hesitated and caught the look Diggle was giving him in the rear vision mirror. "Ah… you know, stuff… important stuff." Sometimes it would just be a whole lot easier if Thea knew about his other identity… even though Oliver knew he'd never willingly tell her.

"Well, that was uber compelling," said Thea sarcastically. "I'm sold."

Oliver made a frustrated sound. "The point is, I'm a grown man and I've got my own life to lead."

"And I'm a grown woman with the same but I'm still here," pointed out Thea. "You think this is my dream evening? It's not but we made a commitment to do this months ago and we're going to do it."

Despite himself, Oliver gave a half-smile. "You get more like our mother every day," he said affectionately.

"Hey!" protested Thea. "And thank you." She rolled her eyes at the conflicting reactions. "We had a complicated relationship."

Oliver couldn't argue with that seeing as he had the same.

"We're here," announced Diggle.

Oliver looked around the street. "We're a block from Roy's place."

"I know," said Thea, "but Roy doesn't like us pulling up in front of his place in the town car. Says it doesn't do him any favors with the neighbors." She looked out the window. "He's not here yet. Roy usually meets us here, he must be running late. It's an epidemic tonight it seems."

"Hey, I was on time," protested Oliver and then relented when he saw the look Thea gave him. "I mean, for me."

"It must be so nice to have your own universe to occupy where time moves differently to the rest of the world," said Thea sweetly. She put a hand on the door. "I'll just go and get Roy."

Oliver put his hand on his own door. "I'll come with you. You're not walking these streets alone."

"I do it all the time," said Thea blithely.

"That is not something I want to hear," said Oliver unhappily.

"I'll go with you, Thea," said Diggle calmly. "After all, it's my job."

"I can do it," pushed Oliver.

"Let the lady decide." Diggle twisted around in his seat and looked at her. "Thea?"

"This is overkill," she said in exasperation, "but I choose Mr. Diggle."

"Hey," said Oliver in annoyance. "What's wrong with me all of a sudden?"

"Such a good question," said Thea teasingly. She leant over and kissed him on the cheek. "I love you but you're a giant pain in the ass lately." Diggle was at her door, opening it for her.

"I wish people would stop telling me they love me and then insulting me," said Oliver hotly as Thea slipped out of the car. "It's getting really old."

Thea popped her head back into the car. "We only say what we do out of love, Ollie."

"You know, there are days I wish I wasn't quite as lovable as I obviously am," said Oliver flatly.

She gave a tinkering laugh. "Yeah, it must be a real hardship."

"You have no idea," muttered Oliver and then he was watching her and Diggle walk off together. Truth be told, Oliver didn't mind the minute alone. He immediately reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his cell phone, determined to try and finish the conversation he had with Felicity earlier that day. He dialed her number but the line refused to connect, despite multiple attempts on Oliver's behalf. Oliver gripped his phone tightly, sending it a death glare. "It's not smart to make an enemy of me," he growled menacingly at his phone. "I've killed people for less." Oliver suddenly caught himself threatening an inanimate object. He flopped back against the car seat and shook his head. "Okay, this feels like a new low." Oliver hoped there wasn't any further down to go but he had his doubts.


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N****: Hi guys, thanks for checking out this chapter despite all the angst I'm putting Olicity and you through. :) Mind you, even though I haven't watched the premiere of Arrow S3 yet (doing that next), from the generalized vibe I'm getting from boards, it seems like the Arrow writers are planning on toying with us Olicity's fans hearts way more than I'm doing. Does them being more evil cancel out at some of my evilness? I'd like to think so. **

**Okay, it's a good news/bad news**

**Good news: Another quick chapter to speed up this hiatus between Olicity**

**Bad news: Here in my home town, we have Australia's first suspected Ebola case. She's a nurse who was over in Sierra Leone nursing in the Ebola clinic over there and she's come and started exhibiting a fever. Now, it has yet to be confirmed if she has Ebola and all the necessary precautions are being taken but we're not a huge city with all of their resources, so if it does turn out to be Ebola, this could be kinda interesting. Particularly as I'm a medical laboratory scientist who works down the road from the Base Hospital where she is currently being barrier nursed. I'm working this weekend in Microbiology and I think at the very least, we're going to be inundated by concerned locals wanting to get tested for Ebola. It's not going to be fun, particularly if it's confirmed she has it, poor woman. So, all that's just a heads up that if I disappear for a little while, it might be because I'm having work issues to deal with. **

**On a lighter note, did everyone get a chance to see the lunar eclipse/blood moon last night? Where I live there was an unobstructed view and it was amazing. The only trouble was that red moons are the sign of a monkey Armageddon. I only discovered this when Hank's doomsday plan was put into action. Apparently he'd attempted to dig himself a fallout bunker in the backyard but gave up when it became too much work. His plan B was to go the Tauntaun route. You know, in The Empire Strikes Back, when Han cuts open the stomach of a shaggy Tauntaun, pulls out the entrails and climbs inside with Luke to save his life? Well, that was Hank's fall back plan… and guess who got to play the role of the Tauntaun? Yeah, Fernando Del Vecchio was none too pleased when Hank started chasing him around the kitchen with a spork and a melon baller. (Knives aren't allowed in our household, for obvious reasons). I eventually restored order but it was touch and go there for a moment. Fernando Del Vecchio sustained a rather nasty melon baller injury which the doctor at in the ER told me was a first for him. I didn't know if he was talking about treating a llama or extracting a melon baller from an orifice of said llama but I didn't like to ask. I suspect it was possibly both. Anyways, it all came out in the wash. The Monkey Apocalypse didn't happen. Fernando Del Vecchio wasn't eviscerated and used as a fallout shelter… so, all in all I call that a win. Also, on a completely unrelated note, I have one melon baller up for sale which has only been slightly used. Anyone interested? **

**And now, the chapter… **

**CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE**

Oliver stood with his back against the wall, in a far corner in the ball room, watching the party goers ebb and flow in front of him. He'd worked out if he stayed very still, people didn't tend to notice him as much. After having done the first round of greetings with everyone, Oliver had managed to disentangle him from the generalized inane chatter and find a quiet peace of sanctuary.

"There you are."

_Sanctuary over._ Oliver turned his head and looked at Roy. "Here I am," he agreed, tone not particularly inviting company. Oliver looked past Roy. "Where's Thea?"

"Catching up with some school friends. Most of my school friends are in jail, or on their way there so it's not something I usually have to deal with." Roy looked around at the extravagant party. "This isn't really my scene. I never got how spending up big on a party like this helps with charity. Why don't people just donate the money they spend on all this food and alcohol and give privately?"

"Because then the people that count don't see them giving," said Oliver wryly. "It takes the point out of the whole thing."

"Isn't the point of a charity thing to raise money for charity?" asked a mystified Roy.

"You'd think," said Oliver dryly.

Roy shook his head and looked around. "Rich people are weird."

"Yes, we are." Oliver took a sip of his mineral water and looked at Roy. "Did I ever apologize for trying to choke you out in the cabin?"

Roy looked back at him in surprise. "You remember doing that?"

"I remember everything," said Oliver tightly.

"Oh, well, then no, you didn't."

"You hit me with a car door. Let's call it even."

"You were going to kill Diggle." Roy arched an eyebrow. "Don't I get points for not letting that happen?"

Oliver didn't like to think about how close he'd come to killing his closest friend. "I wasn't myself."

"I know. You were protecting your baby mama."

Oliver grimaced. "Caught that, did you?"

"In between you trying to repeatedly kill me, yeah, I did," said Roy laconically. He cocked his head. "What the hell was that all about?"

"I got a little turned around," said Oliver shortly.

"All the way round," agreed Roy readily. "What did Felicity have to say about all that stuff?"

Oliver's hand tightened on his glass. "We haven't talked about it."

"Oh, healthy," said Roy straight-faced. "Because having a guy go homicidal stalker on your ass protecting your imaginary baby probably doesn't warrant a conversation."

Oliver glared at him. He didn't need reminding of his state of mind back then. It hadn't been pretty and Roy's take on it just reinforced for Oliver how terrifying the whole ordeal must have been for Felicity.

Roy suddenly frowned. "I mean, Felicity isn't actually pregnant, right? I just kinda assumed but I—"

"Felicity's not pregnant," said Oliver sharply.

"This seems to be a touchy subject, I'm going to stop talking about it now."

"I'd appreciate that."

"How's Felicity's mom?"

"On the road to recovery." Oliver took a sip of his drink and stared unseeingly out into the crowd. "Slowly," he added, a little morosely.

"So, do we know when Felicity is coming back?"

"No," said Oliver tersely.

"Okay, another touchy subject," observed Roy. "I'll add it to the list." He cocked his head. "All of these touchy subjects seem to be pretty Felicity-centric to me."

Oliver blew out a long-suffering breath. "I thought we weren't talking about this?"

"Bunny says you really have to communicate with women, not just listen but comprehend," said Roy conversationally. "I hope you're more communicative with Felicity than you're being with me."

Was he really getting relationship advice from Roy Harper? The world had gone mad. "Communicative?"

"It means—"

"I know what it means," snapped Oliver. "Who's this Bunny?"

"You know, Bunny," Roy prompted him. "Diggle's friend."

Oliver looked at him blankly and shook his head.

"The rich British dude. I met him the night of the cabin stuff. I think Professor Crazy Pants used to work for him or something."

Oliver blinked. "You mean Algernon Forbes-Hamilton?"

Roy screwed up his face. "Algernon? Man, I get why he likes to be called Bunny now."

"You know he's an unscrupulous arms dealer, right?"

Roy shrugged. "Yeah, found that out eventually."

"Why are you even seeing this man anymore?" asked Oliver in confusion. "And why are you taking relationship advice from him?"

"I'm not intentionally seeing him," protested Roy. "He just kinda pops up now and then. I guess he's hanging around until Diggle pays him back that favor."

Oliver's jaw hardened as he straightened up a little. "What favor?"

"I don't know, just that Diggle said he owed him one for helping out with the chemist stuff for your antidote. I don't think Bunny's decided on what it will be yet." Roy pursed his lips. "Although, with that dude, it could turn out to be anything and I mean anything. He's a pretty colorful guy."

Oliver didn't like the sound of this. He didn't like his friends owing villains anything because of him. Oliver made a mental note to talk to Diggle about this as soon as he had a chance. It was yet another reminder of how much his friends had risked to save him when he'd been poisoned. He gave Roy a serious look. "Thank you for all that you did that night. I know it was a rough night but you really came through for Felicity and Diggle… and for me and I appreciate that Roy."

Roy looked a little taken aback. "Oh sure, okay, no problem." He grimaced. "Well, it was a bit of a problem. There are parts of that night I don't think I'll ever fully recover from." Roy gave a little shudder. "I think I've got maliaphobia."

"What?"

"It's a fear of wigs and it's a real thing. I looked it up."

Oliver had no idea what Roy was talking about. "Should any of this be making sense to me?"

"It doesn't to me and I was there," said Roy unhappily. He paused, obviously looking to change the subject. "Do you want your car door back?"

Oliver half-smiled. "No, it's yours. Consider it a gift."

Roy grimaced. "I'd rather an actual car," he grumbled.

Oliver gave him a pointed look. "You're sleeping with my sister. What more do you want from me?"

"Okay, fair point."

From across the room Thea had caught sight of them and was waving at Roy to come over and join her and her group of friends.

"Duty calls," said Roy. He pulled a face. "I hate all this small talk crap. I'm no good at it."

"Why don't you open with the maliaphobia thing?" suggested Oliver evenly. "It's gripping stuff."

Roy gave him a disgruntled look. "So, we're over that gratitude thing, huh?"

"I don't want it to go to your head."

"Yeah, you and the big guy are on the same boat with that stuff." With that Roy shoved his hands in his pockets and walked over to join Thea and her friends, not exactly rushing.

Oliver watched him go and then decided to have another attempt at contacting Felicity. Despite his dismissive attitude with Roy on the subject, communication really was something he was trying to not lose hold of when it came to Felicity, even though it seemed like fate was trying to screw them over on that front. He pulled out his phone and then his heart gave a little leap to see that he had three new voice message. Oliver didn't know when they'd had come in but he knew there was only one person he wanted them to be from. The room was too noisy. He needed to go somewhere more private to listen to it.

"Ollie, so this is where you've been hiding."

Oliver looked up at the sound of the purred observation to see a striking red-head standing in front of him in a figure hugging green dress with a plunging neckline. He forced a pleasant smile to his lips when all he really wanted to do was scream at her to get the hell out of his way. "Hello, Miranda, how are you?"

She gave him a sultry look. "Why don't you tell me? How do I look?"

Oliver kept his smile plastered on his face. "Beautiful as always, of course."

Miranda simpered a little at his praise, not seeming to detect the lack of enthusiasm. She took his arm and leaned into him. "You know, we've never really had a chance to catch up since your return. I can't believe all this time has gone by without us saying hello properly." There was a glint in Miranda's blue eyes as she continued on. "And we used to say hello so very well." She gave him an encouraging look. "Remember?"

"That was a long time ago, Miranda," said Oliver, remembering their brief fling. "A lot has happened since then."

She gave a little shrug. "And a lot has stayed the same." Miranda leant in so her lips where at his ear. "I know you, Ollie and standing in the corner, sipping on mineral water isn't your style." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Why don't I remind you just how well I do know your style?" A confident smile touched Miranda's lips as she moved in to kiss him.

Oliver pulled back and put his hands on her arms, moving her away from him. "It's been great seeing you again, Miranda," he said firmly, "but I've really got somewhere I need to be. Take care of yourself." Oliver then promptly turned around and headed off to find that privacy for himself. He'd given more brutal brush offs in the past but he could tell Miranda didn't appreciate his attempts at being more graceful this time around. Oliver could feel her outraged glare drilling a hole in his back but didn't care. All he wanted to do was check his voice mail message because there was a chance it was from Felicity and that was all he could think about. Oliver ducked out into the hallway of the grand room and the noise of the socialite crowd immediately became muted. He quickly retrieved his first message and listened to it.

"_Hi Oliver, it's me… me, Felicity, that is… not any other me…" _

A huge grin split Oliver's face at hearing her voice. It felt like Christmas morning and he'd just gotten the best gift ever. It was crazy to be this excited over just hearing a voice on the other end of the phone but he was.

"_I'm sorry about before. The coverage here sucks." _

Oliver gave a little frown. Why was she whispering?

"_Can you hear me properly? I guess you can't answer that, this being a recording and all. It's just that I'm in the men's room and I don't want anyone to know I'm in the men's room… even though I am." _

Oliver opened his mouth to ask why she was there but then closed it again, also remembering that this was a recording.

"_It's weird but this is the best place to get good coverage," Felicity continued on in a hushed whisper. "I don't know. Maybe there is something about urinals that is conducive to phone reception? I'm not sure what but it doesn't work in the lady's room and I'm just trying to think what is here that isn't in there. I'm currently crouched on one of the toilets in the cubicle… please don't picture that." _

Oliver smiled and leaned back against the wall, doing just that and imagining how cute Felicity must have looked recording this message. God but he missed her.

"_That gives me the best signal… plus I don't have to stand on the floor which is good, because the floor is sticky and it is freaking me out. Sticky bathroom floors are bad enough in a regular place but in a hospital it could be anything and it's kind of worrying me. What I want to know is—BEEEPP!" _

Oliver made a frustrated noise as the voice mail messaging time was up. He quickly moved onto the next message, hoping Felicity had tried again.

"_Sorry, me again, I forgot I had a time limit on these things and spaced. The smell from the urinal cakes is making me a little dizzy." _

Oliver breathed a sigh of relief and then smiled. Who else in his life could he ever have talk to him about urinal cakes? No one, that's who, only Felicity.

"_I know our conversation cut out last time but I wanted to say that if you need help in the office then you should get Celeste. She knows my systems and she's lovely. I know Celeste would be more than happy to help out while I'm gone. You should absolutely go and requisition her from HR." _

Oliver closed his eyes and leant his head back against the wall. He didn't want Celeste, he wanted Felicity. There wasn't a substitute that would do for Oliver. It was Felicity or it was nothing and he wasn't just talking about the office with that realization.

"_Wait, is requisition the right word? I mean, Celeste isn't a stapler. That doesn't seem right. Seconder her maybe? That sounds better. Go and seconder Celeste." _

How much longer was Felicity going to be away? Oliver lifted his head and banged it back against the wall repeatedly in frustration. He knew this was about her mom and not him but he couldn't take much more of this.

"_I was talking to my mom's doctor and… wait, someone's coming in… ssshh." _

Oliver couldn't help but smile as she shushed him. There was a long pause and then the muffled sound of flushing. Oliver made an impatient sound, willing the guy to hurry the hell up, he was cutting into his precious time with Felicity.

"_Okay, he's gone but he didn't wash his hands. What kind of person doesn't wash their hands in a hospital bathroom? He'd better not have been a doctor, that's all I'm saying because I don't— BEEEPPP!" _

"Son of a bitch!" exclaimed Oliver as he was once again cut off from Felicity. He retrieved the final message.

"_And yes, it's me again. Is it weird that I'm leaving you three voice messages? It feels weird. Maybe it's the fact I'm sitting on top of a toilet but it feels weird. Like I'm stalking you or something, which I'm not… stalking you I mean… I am perched on top of a toilet… not really wearing the right shoes for it to be honest… I should have thought ahead although who wakes up at the beginning of the day and thinks 'what should I wear if I happen to need to crouch on a toilet lid today'? I mean, that would be weird and I- arrkk!" _

Oliver tensed and straightened up from the wall as Felicity gave a little squawk of fear. He heard the muffled voice of a man.

"_You're in the wrong bathroom." _

"_No, I'm not," said Felicity hastily. "This is the lady's." _

"_There are four urinals out here." _

"_I thought they were bidets." _

Oliver wrinkled his nose at her ridiculous comeback. Felicity had just never gotten the knack of lying. He loved that about her.

"_I don't think you know what that word means." _

"_Hey, can't a lady come into the men's room for a little privacy? What's the world coming to? This is still America, right?" _

"_You're weird." _

"_You're weird!" _

"_I'm going now."_

"_I think that would be for the best." _

There was the sound of a toilet stall door closing and then Felicity was speaking again.

"_Okay, I think I have to hang up now, Oliver. I'm pretty certain that guy is off to find some hospital security and I can't tangle with those guys again. I'm already on their radar after the cafeteria incident, which I want you to know, was completely not my fault." _

There was a cafeteria incident and he didn't know what it was. Oliver hated that. He hated this distance between them where he didn't know what was going on in Felicity's world.

"_I'll call you tomorrow, hopefully… you know, connections willing. Bye." _

And with that Felicity was gone. Another broken moment of contact with her. Oliver leaned back heavily against the wall, his thoughts turning to the cabin and how it had felt to have Felicity lying in his arms and listening to her talk about mermaids and slapping ducks. He'd never felt so close to another human being before in his life and Oliver knew that wasn't because of the toxin in his system at the time. It had felt like all the broken pieces of his life had finally fallen into place and had come together in such a way as to show him a brand new kind of life, one with Felicity firmly in the middle of that life. And now that Oliver had a taste of that kind of future, he couldn't let it go. He needed Felicity back in his world to feel alive again, he craved that. Right then Oliver felt like he was going through the motions of life without truly occupying it and he'd done that for long enough during his time on the island and since coming back. He wanted a real life, one which involved Felicity and there was no kind of substitute which would satisfy.

Hours later Oliver was still trying to distract himself from the frustration of his ongoing communication issues with Felicity as he lay stretched out on the living room sofa, book in hand. What he was really trying to do was divert himself from this near overwhelming urge to simply jump on his plane and fly the hell out to Las Vegas and put an end to this excruciating limbo they had going on between them. But Oliver kept coming back to the fact Felicity hadn't asked for him to be there and how could he invade her personal space yet again, after all he'd put her through? It was this annoying back and forth Oliver was trying to drown out by doing some reading. It was mostly successful. He looked up at the sound of the front door being opened and closed. "That you, Speedy?"

Thea strolled into the living room, her high heeled shoes in one hand and leaned against the doorway. "Yeah, it's me."

He'd left the party early and Thea and Roy had stayed on, much to Roy's distress it seemed. "Thought I wouldn't see you again tonight," he noted. "You're not staying over at Roy's?"

"No, not tonight. I wanted to sleep in my own bed tonight." Thea wandered over to the sofa and Oliver pulled up his feet, putting them on the coffee table instead so she could take a seat next to him, curling her feet up underneath her. "What are you reading?" She took the book out of Oliver's hands and looked at the cover. "Jane Eyre." Thea arched an eyebrow at him. "Seriously?"

"I heard it was a good book," hedged Oliver, not answering the obvious question left open by Thea.

"It's a classic but it still doesn't explain why my brother is reading it at eleven o'clock at night," said Thea wryly.

Oliver grimaced, knowing she wasn't going to let it go. "It's Felicity's favorite book," he conceded, "and I've never read it so…"

"Oh my God," said Thea in amusement, "you're turning into such a girl, Oliver." She grinned. "Is that why you're all cranky these days, have you got your periods? Don't tell me, stomach cramps, bloating, sensitive nipples—"

Oliver picked up a sofa throw cushion and playfully smacked his sister in the head with it. "Shut up," he complained laughingly. "I'm reading a book, it's not a big deal."

Thea laughed and batted away the cushion assault. "You're reading a book because it's Felicity's favorite," said Thea knowingly. "It's totally a big deal."

Oliver pulled a face. He hadn't really thought about it at the time but reading Jane Eyre had seemed like a way to get a little bit closer to Felicity when he felt so far away. "Have you read it?"

Thea gave a little snort. "Of course I have. Like I said, it's a classic."

"I've just gotten up to the part where Rochester and Jane were about to be married but then the brother in law dropped the 'already married' bombshell and Jane ran off."

"Oh yeah, that was a bummer and then she meets St. John Rivers—"

"Hey, spoiler alert," said Oliver quickly, "don't ruin it for me." He suddenly scowled. "Wait, Jane meets another man?"

"He's planning on being a missionary… kinda the complete opposite of Mr. Rochester who definitely didn't have any aspirations towards being sainted."

"Of course he is," said Oliver in frustration. "And Jane is going to love the good guy, everyone loves the good guy." His expression darkened. "This book better have a happy ending. I haven't sat through pages of descriptions of women's fashion and carriages to get Jane ending up with another man."

"So, you're team Rochester then?" asked Thea in amusement.

"Aren't I meant to be?" asked Oliver in exasperation. "All this build up and then whammo, one little crazy wife in the attic and Jane is in the wind. Doesn't she know how much Rochester needs her, how he can't function without her?" Oliver knew he was projecting more than a little bit but he couldn't help it. He just really identified with Rochester's tormented character and how he'd made mistakes in the past and was trying to do the best he could to fix them in the present. And then this small ray of sunshine finds its way into his dark world and of course Rochester was going to try to hang onto it anyway he could, even knowing that it wasn't entirely right of him. He didn't deserve Jane but she'd loved him back and everything else had faded away for Rochester. Oliver could see that and he could empathize with what it was like to lose that light from your life. It was as though you were drowning in the blackness left behind.

"Don't be obtuse, Ollie," said Thea in exasperation. "Jane left Rochester for his own good."

"How does leaving the man a broken shell with absolutely no hope left in his life help him exactly?" asked Oliver in disbelief.

"She was protecting him. Back in the day adultery was taken a lot more seriously than it is nowadays." Thea grimaced. "And that was probably a good thing. Anyways, Jane was convinced that if she was to marry Rochester, knowing that he already had a wife, she'd damn them both to Hell and she couldn't allow that. She chose her own heartbreak to protect Rochester's immortal soul. It's the ultimate story of love and sacrifice."

"But now they're both unhappy," said Oliver in frustration. "And Jane is going to end up with some guy she doesn't feel half as much for just because she's convinced herself it's the right thing to do. That is in no way a happy ending."

"Keep reading," Thea urged him sagely. "Nothing worthwhile is ever easy or won without a struggle."

"Is that a roundabout way of telling me that everything works out in the end?" asked Oliver hopefully.

Thea smiled. "It's my direct way of telling you to keep reading. It's not over until it's over."

"Listen to you, being all zen-like."

Thea laughed. "Yeah, I'm thinking of starting my own religion – the Thea-ites."

"I'm assuming this new religion will have rules about lots of shoes in it," he teased her.

"Of course," said Thea primly. "Footwear is an oft neglected aspect of any religious experience."

Oliver felt a wave of affection for his little sister and an intense appreciation of where their relationship had ultimately ended up at. "Sorry I was such an ass face tonight."

Thea arched an eyebrow. "Ass face?"

Oliver gave her a sheepish smile. "It's what Felicity calls me when I'm being… well, an ass face, I guess."

"There is nothing not to love about that girl," said Thea in amusement.

"Tell me about it," sighed Oliver.

Thea cocked her head and looked at him intently. "You really miss her, don't you?"

Oliver gave a self-deprecating grimace. "And here was I thinking I was doing such a good job of hiding it."

"Here's a spoiler alert for you, you really weren't."

Oliver blew out a long breath. "I know," he sighed.

"Why don't you just go to her, Ollie? It's not like we don't have a private jet at our beck and call. Just get on it and go to Las Vegas. I'm sure Felicity will appreciate seeing you."

That sounded like heaven to Oliver. The only trouble was, he wasn't as sure as Thea that Felicity would be happy to see him. "It's complicated," he said quietly.

"Uncomplicate it."

Oliver closed his eyes and leant his head back against the sofa. "I don't know how."

"Just don't give up," Thea urged him.

Oliver opened his eyes and turned his head to look at her. "I don't think I know how to. Not when it comes to Felicity."

"Look at you," said Thea in wonder. "Actually having to chase a woman. That must feel really weird."

"I've chased women before," he protested.

"A chase that last five seconds and where you both knew the outcome before you even started isn't a chase, big brother," said Thea wryly. "You're in uncharted waters here."

"I know." He pulled a face. "Things didn't go so well for me the last time I was in uncharted waters."

"They ended up okay," disagreed Thea. She gave a small smile. "You ended up coming home to us… to me."

"Yeah, I did," said Oliver huskily.

"Not such a bad ending, right?"

Oliver reached out and put his arm around Thea's shoulders as she moved in and wrapped her arms around his waist, laying her head on his chest. "Not bad at all," he agreed before kissing the top of her head. They lay like that for a long moment, just enjoying the quietness of the moment of sibling bonding.

"Do you think Roy is gay?" asked Thea suddenly, her head still on his chest.

Oliver frowned. "Roy who?"

"Roy my boyfriend," said Thea in ire, sitting up. "How many Roy's do you know?"

"Three."

"Who are they?" she challenged him.

"Roy Harper, Roy my mechanic and the Roy who does our gardens when Trent in on vacations."

"That's Tony," she corrected him.

"Seriously? Because I've always called him Roy. Why didn't he ever correct me?"

"I don't know, maybe because you're his boss," said Thea wryly.

"Which makes it more important I call him by the right name." Oliver shook his head. "He's worked for us for three years and the whole time I've called him Roy."

"We're getting away from the point," said Thea in frustration. "Answer my question about Roy."

"No."

"Why not?" asked Thea sharply. "Do you know something I don't know?"

"I mean, no, I don't think Roy is gay," said Oliver exasperation. "On account of him having regular sex with my sister." He gave a little shudder. "I don't think I'm ever going to forgive you for making me say those words out loud to you." Oliver looked at her strangely. "Why would you even think such a thing?"

"I did an internet history search on Roy's computer and he's been looking up stuff about ladyboys," said Thea worriedly. "They're—"

"I know what ladyboys are."

"Why would Roy look something like that up?" fretted Thea.

Oliver shrugged. "I don't know, idle curiosity. It doesn't have to mean anything. I looked up kangaroo vaginas the other day."

Thea looked at him blankly. "Why?"

"A friend of mine told me they have three."

"Do they?"

"Yes."

"Was that friend Felicity by any chance?"

Oliver smiled. "Who else in my life would know something like that and then actually talk about it?" He felt another pang of missing Felicity.

"It wouldn't be a long list," agreed Thea. "He also looked up maliaphobia. That's a—"

"Fear of wigs, I know."

Thea rolled her eyes. "Aren't you a Nora Know-It-All tonight." She gnawed on her bottom lip and looked concerned. "Why would Roy be wanting to know anything about wigs? Plus, he's got that new friend, Bunny."

Oliver frowned. "You know Bunny?"

"You know him too?" said Thea in surprise.

"No, we've never met, but I know of him." He gave her a determined look. "I want you to stay away from that guy, Thea. I mean it."

"Why, who is he?"

"Just no one you need to be hanging out with."

"I wasn't hanging out with him. He came to the club, looking for Roy. Said they'd met the night before in his bedroom and was looking to reconnect. Bunny is obviously gay and he seemed to think he had a shot with Roy." Thea's pretty face clouded over. "Why would he think that?"

"It doesn't matter what this Bunny guy thinks because the reality is that he doesn't," said Oliver firmly. "Roy is in love with you and even if he wasn't, he likes girls, trust me, he's not gay."

Thea sighed heavily. "I guess. It's just sometimes you wonder if you ever really know a person, right? We all have our secrets."

"Whatever Roy's secrets are, none of them are him being gay, so you can stop worrying about that."

Thea looked relieved and then actually managed a smile. "You know, you're not so bad on the zen-like state when giving out advice too. Maybe you should start your own religion as well – the Olivarians."

Oliver screwed up his face. "I sound like a gynecological disorder."

"We can work on the name."

"Mm… well, I think I need to work a few more things out in my own life before I sign up to be Glorious Leader to a cult of minions." Like what was going on in Felicity's mind right then. That was a pressing need of Oliver's which was pretty much overshadowing the rest of his life. His whole life was in a state of limbo and Oliver really needed that to change soon. He just didn't know how that was going to happen…

**A/N****: So, yeah, this was kind of a culmination of a couple of threads I've laid down – the Jane Eyre stuff, Roy's cross dressing/Bunny PTSD plus I've slipped in a couple of plot points to further the story in upcoming chapters. And Roy and Oliver (Roliver?) get to touch base as they haven't really caught up since Roy slammed a car door into Oliver's head… at least, not that we've seen**.

**And for those of you wondering when Oliver and Felicity meet up again… first of all those who don't, stop reading in 3,2,1… okay, alone at last… I'm not saying that it's going to happen in the next chapter… but I'm not not saying it's going to be the next chapter… just saying… or not saying anything… or something. *wraps her cloak of mystery around herself and slinks back into the darkness from whence she came***


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N****: Good news everybody, the nurse in my town has tested negative for Ebola – say yay for that! **

**I've also watched the premier of S3 now. Well… a lot happened there, didn't it? Lol Yes, it's going to be a torturous season of will they/won't they, I can see it now. Here's hoping all the angst won't be in vain, eh? I will say it's very interesting to me that the writers have taken the exact opposite approach to me in getting Olicity together. The show has Olicity easily falling into their date and everything going to hell in a hand basket afterwards. I'm doing the reverse. The hell and the hand basket is coming first, for them getting to the actual date part. Once we get there, it's going to be a much smoother ride… even though I have more than a few hiccups planned for them along the way, of course. Otherwise it's a pretty dull story. But yeah, I just found that interesting. **

**Speaking of interesting and in my never ending quest to equip my little ducklings as useful and intriguing members of society. Here are a few little gems you can slip into conversation with your friends/colleagues which are guaranteed to be a conversation starter: **

**Cockroaches fart every 15 minutes and continue to release methane for up to 18hrs after their death (seems like cockroaches, just like Dylan Thomas, won't go gentle into that good night) **

**Smearing a small amount of dog poop on an insect bite will relieve itching and swelling (however it may create some other issues you'll have to deal with, like being a social outcast… but at least you won't be an itchy one) **

**In the US, there are more than 40 000 toilet related injuries every year (what are you people doing in there? I mean, I know what Felicity was doing, but still…) **

**Approximately 80% of all paper money in the US has traces of cocaine on it (okay, now the toilet thing is making more sense)**

**Jellybeans are covered in shellac which is made from bug excretions (nope, doesn't put me off eating them… what does that say about me?)**

**Okay, now there is no way you won't wow people in your next social setting. You're welcome. :D **

**Here's the chapter…**

**CHAPTER THIRTY SIX**

Three days later Oliver still had no idea when his purgatory was going to come to an end and communication with Felicity was getting even patchier. The tenuous threads of his sanity were beginning to snap. Not a great situation when Oliver knew his first order of business when he actually saw Felicity again was to reassure her he wasn't crazy anymore. At least he still had the hunt. Chasing down the bad guys on Starling City's streets helped clear his mind, gave him something else to focus on and it was a welcome relief. Even in his sleep dreams of Felicity haunted his subconscious. But with every dream he had of being hold Felicity in his arms again, seeing her smile up at him, Oliver always woke up alone and it was like losing her all over again. It was getting so that he was dreading even going to sleep now. This was his only respite. Oliver ran along the roof tops of the backstreets, trying to get ahead of the latest villain who'd just robbed a convenience store and cracked open the head of the young female clerk behind the counter. They'd intercepted the call on the police scanner and Oliver knew the police weren't going to get there before the guy was long gone. But he could.

"One street over and you should have him." Diggle's voice was in his ear, he was nearby, in the car and monitoring the street cameras to track where their robber was at all times. "I'll cut him off, turn him back round to you."

"Copy that," said Oliver, still running. He leapt agilely between two buildings and rolled to his feet before continuing to run along the roof tops of various businesses and houses. In seconds he was a block over and had his target in his sight. "Got him." Up ahead was the end of the alleyway which would lead to freedom for the robber but Diggle suddenly pulled up in his van, blocking that escape route. The man hastily turned around, running back the way he came and towards Oliver. Stringing an arrow to his bow, Oliver let fly, landing the arrow directly in front of the man. The thief abruptly stopped running and looked up in horror. Oliver had already strung another arrow and this one landed in the man's left shoe, pinning it and him to the ground.

The man gave a screech of pain and grabbed his leg, trying to unstick it.

"Drop the gun," Oliver ordered him, his voice scrambled by the modulator he was wearing.

The terrified man immediately did as he was told.

Oliver looked down at him from the rooftop, aware of the imposing figure he was cutting. "The police are on their way and you're going to stay there and wait for them. I know your face now and if I ever see it again, I'm going to leave you with more than a limp. Do you understand?"

The man gave a frantic nod of his head. "Don't kill me!" he begged. "This has all been a big mistake!"

"The only mistake made was you thinking you could hurt innocent people in my city," growled Oliver. He fired off another arrow and pinned the man's other foot to the ground for good measure. There was already the wail of police sirens filling the air as he turned and ran back along the rooftops.

"I'm two streets over," Diggle told him.

"On my way." Oliver made short work of the distance between them and soon he was standing on a roof looking down at the top of Diggle's latest car sitting in an alleyway. The only thing separating them was one lot which looked like the back lot of a garage. Multiple car bodies were scattered around the lot, all in various states of disrepair. Three large guard dogs had wandered out in the lot and were looking up at Oliver in interest as he got a little too close to their turf for their liking.

Diggle's voice was in his ear again. "The only mistake you made was thinking you could hurt innocent people in my city," he mimicked Oliver's previous statement teasingly. "A bit over the top, don't you think?"

The shortest distance to Diggle was a straight line and that straight line happened to be an eight inch beam of wood running from one side of the lot to the other, over the top of the junk yard. "I'm running around on roofs dressed in green leathers and a hood, firing arrows at people," said Oliver dryly. He stepped out onto the beam, confident of his balancing abilities. "I don't know if that's a thing for me anymore."

Diggle chuckled. "Point taken. Careful on that beam. Those dogs look like they're looking to add some greens to their diet."

Oliver glanced down and saw the three dogs circling directly underneath him, emitting warning growls and never taking their eyes off him. "I've got it," said Oliver easily as he stepped out onto the plank of wood. Two things happened in the next moment. Ones, his cell phone went off and Oliver immediately made a grab for it. Responding to his phone had become like a Pavlovian response thing for him nowadays because there was always the hope that it was Felicity. Consequently, he answered the phone wherever he was, whatever he was doing. The second was that while he was momentarily distracted by retrieving his phone, he stepped on a wet part of the beam, causing his foot to lose its place. Oliver tumbled off the beam and only his quick reflexes saved him as he grabbed at the same beam to stop himself from falling any further. He lost the grip he had on his phone in the lunge to save himself and it tumbled to the ground below as the guard dogs were throwing themselves up into the air frantically to try and get a hold of him. Oliver immediately swung his legs up out of danger and levered himself back onto the ledge.

"Word to the wise, don't try and do two things at once, you're not great at it."

Oliver looked over to where Diggle was now out of the car and standing in the alleyway, looking up through the chain link fence at him as Oliver rebalanced himself on the beam. Oliver could tell he'd given Diggle a moment of worry despite his apparent calmness. "Damn it," he growled, looking down at his phone. "I need to get that back." Felicity could be leaving a message even now. The phone was in the middle of the pack of dogs who were still jumping and snarling viciously up at him.

"Yeah, no, that's not a great idea," cautioned Diggle.

"It doesn't look broken," insisted Oliver.

"That wasn't my issue with you going for the phone," said Diggle wryly. "It was more snappy, bitey and crunchy there."

"Just distract them," said Oliver. "I'll jump down and get the phone."

"There isn't enough distance between me and you for a distraction to work. They'll just turn around and be back on you in seconds as soon as your feet touch the ground."

"Then try and be _really_ distracting," said Oliver stubbornly. He really needed his phone back. Just then one of the dogs noticed the phone and started to sniff at it. Oliver knew his scent must be all over it. "Hey you, leave that alone," he ordered the dog sternly. To which the dog looked up at him and then turned his attention back to the phone, promptly picking it up and then proceeding to crunch it to pieces in his mouth. Oliver's eyes went wide in outrage. "You complete ass face!" he yelled at the dog.

"Okay, I'm calling it," said Diggle as the dog crunched noisily through the phone. "Time of death, 8:03pm. All the king's men and all the king's horses aren't putting that puppy back together."

Oliver gave the dog an angry death glare but knew Diggle was right. The phone was gone. There was nothing to be done about it. He stalked the rest of the way across the beam, fuming. Oliver jumped down on the other side to join the waiting Diggle. "Did you see that?" he asked in outrage. "That was totally deliberate by that dog."

"I guess that's why he's an ass face," said Diggle in wry amusement. "That's a new word for you."

"It's a Felicity word," grumbled Oliver, still really annoyed as he walked around to the passenger's side of the car and climbed in. "She's used it on me before."

"She's never used it on me," replied Diggle as the car dipped under his weight as he too climbed in behind the wheel. "Guess I've never been an ass face."

"I find that highly unlikely," said Oliver flatly. He sent a final glare at the junkyard dogs who were still at the fence, barking madly at them, even as Diggle drove them away. "And speaking of asses, what's this about you owing some kind of favor to a guy named Bunny?"

"How did you get from asses to Bunny?" asked Diggle in consternation as he drove them along the back streets of the Glades.

"I don't know," said Oliver distractedly, still thinking about that missed phone call. "Bunnies have butts… it's kind of a segue way."

"That's a pretty scatter logical connection," said Diggle wryly. "You sound like Felicity."

"Nobody sounds like Felicity except for Felicity," said Oliver a little morosely. He tried not to think about the giant hole her absence was leaving in his life. Oliver turned his attention back to his original question. "So, what's going on with you and this Forbes-Hamilton guy?"

"Nothing. He did me a favor and in return, I'll do him one."

"What kind of favor?" asked Oliver sharply. "I don't like the sound of this."

"I think if it was down to him, he'd want me to sleep with him," said Diggle easily. He gave a little shrug. "I don't blame the guy. I'm adorable."

Diggle said that with such a straight face, Oliver was suddenly a little worried. "You're not serious right now, are you?"

"Completely. I am, to all intents and purposes, beyond adorable."

Oliver rolled his eyes. "I meant the other thing. The sex thing."

Diggle glanced his way and arched an eyebrow. "Are you asking me if I'm intending to prostitute myself out to pay back a favor I owe on your behalf?"

"I guess," said Oliver a little uncertainly.

"How much do you think I like you? Because if you really think that, it's a whole lot less than you're giving me credit for right now."

Oliver gave a grunt at Diggle's teasing. "I just don't like my friends owing things to people like this Forbes-Hamilton guy. Particularly not on my account."

"Forbes-Hamilton isn't exactly what you think he is," said Diggle easily. "I can handle him. Don't give it a second thought. Go back to your obsessing over Felicity."

"I'm not obsessed," said Oliver sharply, ever conscious of even the slightest suggestion that he wasn't fully recovered from the effects of the XR-320. "Who says I'm obsessed?"

"I did, just then. Try and pay better attention."

"I'm just worried about Felicity and her mom," said Oliver tightly. "Which is completely natural and not obsessive at all."

"You wanted to jump down into the middle of a pack of rabid junkyard dogs to get your phone, just on the off chance it was Felicity on the other end of that call."

"No," huffed Oliver, "that wasn't about Felicity. I was waiting on an important call from my… from my… ahh…"

"Could you lie faster?" asked Diggle casually. "I want to make this an early night if I can."

Oliver scowled. "I'm not obsessing about Felicity." Only he was and it was getting worse the longer they were separated.

"So, you're not in love with her anymore?"

"Of course I'm still in love with her," said Oliver irritably. "Love isn't like a rash. It doesn't just clear up over time if you put a bit of ointment on it."

"Sounds like you've got a lot of experiences with rashes," said Diggle in amusement. "But do you mind me giving you some advice on love from my humble experience?"

"I have yet to find a way to stop you with this kind of stuff, so sure, why not?" said Oliver flatly. "Have at it."

"Remember how I said to you a while back a little bit of your love goes a long way?"

"Yes," said Oliver, casting him a wary, sideways look. He didn't like where this was going.

"You're a very intense guy."

Oliver opened his mind to argue the point about that but then thought better of it. "Continue."

"You and Felicity have recently shared a very intense experience and I'm assuming when she comes back, you want to start some kind of ongoing romantic relationship with her."

"Of course I want that, if Felicity does," said Oliver unevenly.

"Can I make a suggestion that you take things slowly with Felicity when she does come back?"

"I was planning on doing that anyways," said Oliver irritably.

"Yes, but your version of slowly and other people's isn't the same thing."

"Yes, it is."

"Alright then, answer me this. What's the longest time you've waited to have sex with a woman once you've decided you want her?"

_Uh oh. _

"What do you mean?" he hedged, trying to buy time.

"I mean, once you've decided you've wanted a woman in the past, what's the longest time that has gone by between you deciding you want to have sex with them and the actual sex."

Oliver blinked. "I don't know," he said uncomfortably. "Who knows that kind of stuff off the top of their heads?"

"Just try for an educated guess."

Oliver pulled a face. "I don't know… twelve maybe?"

"Twelve what?"

"Ahh…"

"Twelve weeks?"

Oliver pursed his lips and avoided looking at Diggle. "Umm…"

"Twelve days?"

Oliver blew out a long breath, aware of the looks Diggle was giving him as the other man divided his attention between the road and Oliver.

"Twelve hours?" asked Diggle in disbelief. "_That's_ the longest you've held out for sex in a relationship? Twelve hours?" He shook his head. "And yet you're making out like I'm the whore in this relationship."

"Twelve hours isn't that bad," protested Oliver unhappily, even though he knew it was.

"It is when that is the _longest_ you've held out for sex," said Diggle roundly. "And which brings me back around to my point. Don't rush Felicity when she gets back. I know you, you're going to think you're going slowly but it's going to feel like the complete opposite to Felicity. She's not like all your other women, Oliver."

"You think I don't know that?" asked Oliver in frustration. "You don't think I lay awake at night going over all the ways I can screw this up? I want Felicity and me to be different from all my other failed relationships. I want us to last. I _need_ us to last."

"And statements like that last one is going too fast. When you tell someone you need them like that before they're ready to hear it, that feels like pressure to them."

"I'm not going to pressurize Felicity into anything," insisted Oliver. "I want her to enter into a relationship with me of her own free will because she wants to."

"And, if she doesn't want to, what's your back up plan exactly?"

_Go quietly insane_. "I don't know. I don't have one. All I need is one chance to prove to Felicity I'm sincere."

"And it'll be her decision about whether or not she gives you that chance. I just want us all to be on the same page with that, okay?"

"Why are you saying all this?" asked Oliver tersely. "Do you think Felicity won't want to give me a chance?"

"I think Felicity has always had a soft spot when it comes to you and I don't want you to take advantage of that."

"Why would you think I want to take advantage of Felicity?" asked a mystified Oliver. "That's the last thing I want to do."

"I'm just saying that you can be pretty overwhelming when you fix your mind to a certain course. Try and remember that some of us mere mortals aren't quite as driven as you are. If you can just ease back a little on the intensity pedal, I think everyone is going to be a lot happier."

"You make me sound like a mad man," said Oliver unhappily.

"Take a look at your life, Oliver," said Diggle calmly. "And now answer me this – would a completely sane and rational man live the kind of life you do?"

Oliver glared at him. "You're living the same life too."

"Not exactly."

"Close enough to."

"I'm far enough back from the ledge to get some perspective. Your life is weird, Oliver."

"Too weird for Felicity is what you mean," said Oliver resentfully.

"Not at all. Felicity is one in a million like that. She takes a surprising amount in her stride. All I'm saying is try and remember she's a lot shorter than you are, her strides are not quite as long. You may have to wait for her to catch up." Diggle gave a shrug. "So, just be patient is all."

"I am being patient," said Oliver in frustration. "I haven't seen Felicity in nearly three weeks. How much more patient can I be?"

"The real patience kicks in when you actually see her. This stuff doesn't count."

Oliver's shoulders sagged. That was one hell of a depressing thought.

He was still pondering Diggle's warnings the next day, even as he fossicked around in the forest of files which had become the filing room. Basically Diggle had just added to his nerves about seeing Felicity for the first time again. There were so many things which could go badly between them. It was the not knowing what he was dealing with which was killing Oliver. Diggle was suddenly filling the doorway of file room.

"In thirteen minutes the town car is driving out of the underground car park, with or without you in it," he warned Oliver. "This is a big meeting, a lot of corporate investors and you're not going to be late."

"Why do you care?" asked Oliver in vexation as he picked up and slammed down file after file.

"I'm your driver," said Diggle casually. "Your lateness reflects poorly on me professionally."

Oliver sent him a harried look. "Like you care about that."

"I care that it looks like I can't organize one rich boy to be anywhere on time."

"There are extenuating circumstances when it comes to me and my lateness," said Oliver dismissively.

"You can't hang this one on the Arrow. You're late today because you're late today."

Diggle was right. Oliver had overslept that morning because he'd been having a fantastic dream where he and Felicity were on a date and having the time of their lives. He'd fought like hell to stop himself from waking up from that particular dream because he knew reality was a lot more depressing. "I can't find a contract draft I need for this meeting," said Oliver in agitation, still looking through stacks of papers.

Diggle sighed. "Okay, let me help."

"No," said Oliver sharply. "Don't touch anything. I've got a system going."

Diggle looked at the chaos in the room. "I find that a highly unlikely assertion. Why don't you just print up the contract again? It'd be a lot quicker."

"No, it isn't because I don't know where Felicity's saved it on the server."

"There's a lot of things you don't seem to know about this contract. Are you sure it even exists?"

Diggle earned himself a dark look from Oliver for that last crack.

Oliver's lips tightened. "I know what I'm doing, just go and wait for me in the car."

"Twelve minutes," cautioned Diggle. "I roll out with or without the CEO of Queen Consolidated."

"What's the point of driving an empty car to a meeting?" asked Oliver in exasperation.

"Fresh air and I get to make a point."

Oliver rolled his eyes. "Awesome."

"It's eleven minutes, thirty-eight seconds now."

Oliver made an irritated noise. "Stop that, it's like you're a bomb counting down before exploding."

"Just trying to motivate you."

Oliver grunted. "Yeah, thanks for that."

"Eleven minutes, seventeen seconds now," called back Diggle over his shoulder as he strolled off.

Oliver shook his head and continued his search for the elusive contract. He was relatively sure that Diggle wasn't going to leave without him but he'd prefer not to find out. Oliver just kept searching as the minutes ticked by and he didn't look up as he caught a shadow out of the corner of his eye. "I know, I know, I'm working on it," he said sharply. "Don't start with the stupid countdown again. It really doesn't help, Digg—" Oliver had turned his head to address the other man but the silhouette he saw in the doorway was definitely not that of one John Diggle. This outline was decidedly smaller, and a lot more feminine. Oliver blinked, hardly able to believe his eyes. "Felicity?" His voice cracked over her name and then his throat closed over, making further words seemed like an impossibility as she stepped into the room, drawing closer to him. Felicity's blonde ponytail swayed in time with the feminine swell of her hips and Oliver couldn't take his eyes off of her.

If this was another dream, Oliver was going to scream the place down…

**A/N****: Man, if it is a dream, how much would you guys hate me? A lot, right? Yeah, that's what I thought. Tune in tomorrow and we'll find out one way or the other… ;) **


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N****: Posting and running tonight, guys. Long, hard day at the lab (you should all come and see what I've got on the slab – yes, I Dr Frank N Furtered you because if loving Tim Curry in drag as a transvestite, alien, slutty doctor who sins against the laws of nature is wrong, then I just don't want to be right). **

**So, I'll be brief. **

**Updates in my life – D'Artagnan seems to have gone to a better place as I haven't seen him for a couple of weeks. I bought one of those sonic things which is meant to repel rats/mice and it seems to have worked. That's science 1, rats 0. And I didn't have to stitch up a single butt hole, so all in all, I'm chuffed. **

**Second update is that I've just finished inventing a salad dressing which I think I'm going to call Aunty Lou's Super Duper Salad Dressing… or Veronica… I'm not sure which yet. I've been working on getting the formula right for months ever since Kraft discontinued my one and only favourite dressing - Fat Free French… the bastards. I've tried every other brand and flavor and hated them all. And that was how Veronica came into this world… born of necessity and a 'never say die' attitude. **

**And that's it. Now there is only the chapter to read and you're good to go. So, please, put your trays in the upright position and dive in and we'll find out if it was all a dream… **

**CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN**

Oliver remained frozen in place, too frightened to move or even blink in case the apparition he was currently staring at might evaporate.

Felicity looked around the room, wide-eyed. "Were we broken into?" she asked unsteadily.

Oliver could barely hear her over the roaring of blood in his ears. "Ah, no," he said hoarsely.

Felicity made a stressed face. "What happened to my file room?"

Oliver looked around the room and tried to think quickly which was basically impossible right then. "This is pretty much how you left it, isn't it?" he asked weakly. Oliver placed the folder he was holding lightly on top of a leaning stack of files on the desk and apparently it was the straw which broke the camel's back. The teetering tower toppled to one side, sliding off the desk and crashing into other stacks, making them fall over as well. It was a domino effect which basically left the room ankle deep in loose pieces of paper and folders. Oliver saw all of it unfold out of the corner of his eye but he refused to turn and look at it properly, allowing him to the hope that it wasn't as bad as he knew it was. "More or less," he finished off valiantly.

Felicity's mouth was hanging open at the rampant scene of destruction she was now viewing. "It's less," she squawked, "way, way less!"

Oliver grimaced, reluctantly turning his head to take in the carnage. "I'll help you put everything back in order," he offered up quickly.

Felicity tried to take a few steps further into the room but files just collected around her ankles, like she was wading in a paper stream. "That would be like getting Jack the Ripper to be your gynecologist," she said dazedly. "Not a great idea, Oliver."

_Did Felicity just compare him to a serial killer?_ Oliver swallowed hard, this wasn't going well. He needed to distract her from the files. "How-when did you get back?"

"Last night," said Felicity distractedly as she bent down and picked up a handful of folders but more just slid into the space she'd created. "I texted you I was in." She looked back at him. "You didn't text back."

Oliver pulled a face. Damn it, he knew that phone call had been from Felicity. "A dog ate my phone."

Felicity cocked her head. "Is that a euphemism for something?"

"No, a dog actually ate my phone, last night, when I was out patrolling."

She frowned. "Is the dog okay? They shouldn't eat phones, it'll get stuck."

"He didn't really eat it, just crunched it up."

"Why?"

"Because he was being a dick."

"No, why did the dog have your phone in the first place?"

"I dropped it." Oliver shook his head. "It's not important."

"Oh."

There was a long pause then and Oliver scrambled for something to say. He'd rehearsed this moment a thousand times in his head and now he was completely blank. There was so much he wanted to say to her but Oliver didn't know where to start.

"You'd better get going, you're going to be late," said Felicity finally. "It's an important meeting and most of the others have come halfway around the world to be there. You should at least make it fifteen blocks on time."

Oliver blinked. "How did you know about the meeting?"

"I uploaded your schedule last night. Wanted to know what I was walking into today and be prepared." Felicity pursed her lips and eyed the disaster zone which used to be her meticulously organized filing system. "Although there are always some things you can't really prepare for apparently," she finished off unevenly.

Oliver made a pained expression. "I'm sorry. It just kind of got away from me a little bit." He followed Felicity's gaze. "A lot," he amended ruefully.

"It's okay," said Felicity, forcing a bright smile to her lips. "At least I won't be bored today."

"So… you're back?" asked Oliver cautiously. "How's your mom doing?"

"I moved her into the rehabilitation facility yesterday," said Felicity, nodding her head. "She's doing great. Settled right in and already running the place." A lop-sided smile touched her lips. "That's my mom for you. She never stays down for long."

"A family trait it seems," said Oliver. He couldn't stop staring at her. It was like he was a man dying of thirst in the desert who had just come across the first well spring he'd seen in three weeks. Oliver wanted to drink in every little thing about her until he was fit to burst. "You look tired," he said unevenly. "Are you feeling alright? You must be exhausted after spending all that time looking after your mom." Oliver's gaze trailed down to her arms where he could still see the faint outline of scratches on Felicity's arms. Scratches he'd caused when she'd run off into the woods to try and escape him. Oliver swallowed hard, feeling sick. This was a lot more confronting than he'd expected, even though he'd been bracing for this for weeks. "And you're still recovering yourself," he said hoarsely, finding those marks hard to look away from.

Felicity self-consciously pulled down her sleeve and put her hands behind her back. "I'm fine," she said quickly. "It's just my stupid pale skin. Everything looks bad on it. Even when it's not…" Felicity trailed off and then took a deep breath. "What were you looking for?"

_Some kind of sign that you don't hate me even though you have every reason to._ Oliver paused, not sure for a moment if he'd said that out loud but Felicity just continued to look at him expectantly and he knew he mustn't have. "I was looking for the Nagasaki contract," he said distractedly.

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I don't think that is going to happen in here without a handful of experienced Sherpa's and a team of rescue dogs. I'll print you up a new one." She turned around and headed out of the room.

Oliver instantly followed, too frightened to let her out his sight in case she disappeared again, like in his dreams. Felicity walked down the corridor and into their main office. She sat behind her desk and opened up her computer as Oliver watched her. It felt so good to see Felicity back where she belonged but even so, Oliver was still tied up in knots inside. All he wanted to do was put his arms around her and tell her how glad he was that she was back, how much he'd missed her. But Oliver didn't know if Felicity would want him touching her ever again after what had happened. Normally she was the one who initiated the hugs between them but she hadn't this time. Oliver didn't know if it was just because of the distraction of seeing the state of her files or if Felicity really did have an aversion to touching him in anyway now. Oliver pressed his lips together in a pained response to that thought. Did Felicity think it wasn't safe to get to close to him still? Was she worried he was going to attack her again? They were the questions which had been keeping him awake at night and he needed to know the answer to.

Felicity stood up and walked over to the printer, grabbing the sheets of paper which had just printed out. "There you go." She walked up and handed them to him.

Their fingers collided for the briefest of seconds and Oliver felt a bolt of lightning rock his entire body from just that smallest of touches.

Felicity hastily snatched her hand away and looked a little flustered. "You'd better go."

Oliver's heart sank at her reaction to such a tiny amount of contact. This was his worst nightmare. "Will you be here when I get back?" he asked shakily.

"No."

Oliver felt the blood drain from his face.

"It's pretty likely I'll be in the file room, you know, just me and the UN disaster rescue team."

His shoulders sagged in relief. "But you'll be in the building," he pushed. "Working… here… in the building?"

"That's where my job is, yes," said Felicity, looking a little confused. She frowned. "I do still have a job, right? I mean, I know I was gone for way longer than I thought I would and everything and I would totally understand if—"

"Felicity, of course you still work here." Oliver interrupted her babbling to try and reassure her. "If you want to, that is."

"I want to."

Oliver felt a small ray of hope that things might not be quite as bad as he'd first feared.

"I've got bills to pay after all," finished off Felicity blithely.

Oliver hoped his face wasn't registering how crestfallen he was over that last statement of Felicity's.

She glanced at her watch. "Oliver, you really need not to be here anymore. At least try and be on time for this thing."

Oliver didn't give a damn about the meeting now that Felicity was back. He wanted to blow the whole thing off and just be with her but she didn't seem to feel the same way. He reluctantly prepared himself to leave. "Okay, well, I guess I'll see you when I get back?"

Felicity nodded. "Okay."

Oliver couldn't think of anything else to say or do to prolong his time with Felicity so he was forced to turn around and head towards the elevator. Once inside the elevator and the doors had slid shut over slumped back against the wall of the thing and let out an unsteady breath. So, that could have gone better but it also could have gone a whole lot worse. Felicity had come back. In his darkest moments Oliver had doubted even that possibility. Now that she was here, Oliver felt like he at least had a chance to state his case. Diggle's warning of not going too quickly was still rolling around in his head and Oliver was trying to take his advice. But Felicity needed to know how he felt, that everything he'd said in the cabin had been true. Oliver needed to make sure that she knew that and wasn't thinking it was all down to him being poisoned. What happened after that he'd have to leave up to Felicity but they needed to have that conversation first. This day was just going to drag by, Oliver could tell.

#

Felicity finished tidying up the last of her email back log and sat back in her chair. One job down. She glanced out at the corridor, knowing it led to the little filing room of horrors. Wrinkling her nose, Felicity looked for a reason to procrastinate before diving into that mess. She pulled out her phone and for not exactly for the first time, she scrolled through and pulled up that picture of Oliver passed out in her bed. Felicity stared at all that relaxed beauty, surprised she hadn't worn out the pixels in the screen from the last couple of weeks. She couldn't count the number of times she'd taken out her phone and looked at this exact picture, wondering how Oliver was, what was really going on with him. Their rushed and broken phone conversations hadn't given Felicity any real idea what he was thinking. Which left her to fill in some pretty big blanks and the picture she kept painting always ended up being bleak. He looked so amazing in her bed, like that was where he belonged but Felicity knew that was just a girlish fantasy on her behalf. Oliver didn't have the same intensity of feelings for her and she just needed to try and forget about everything that had happened leading up to and including the cabin. That wasn't the real Oliver. It was a mantra she'd been repeating to herself over and over, desperate for it to penetrate her stupidly hoping heart.

Felicity's hand tightened on her phone and knew she needed a dose of reality after finally being in the same room with Oliver again. It was all she could do not to throw herself into his arms and hug the life out of him but he hadn't made any kind of move towards her and Felicity had thought better of it. It was obvious he was looking to let her down gently and she wanted to make sure she was ready for it and took it like an adult. Even though she felt like neither of those things on seeing him again. It had been intoxicating to see him again, be so close to him but Felicity forced herself to remember that best case scenario between the two of them was going back to how they used to be. She found the online article she was looking for and stared at the image accompanying the write up to reinforce her determination to keep this all in perspective.

"_Queen Heir Looks to Re-kindle Spark with Old Flame."_

Oliver was obviously at a party with some impossibly gorgeous red-head, about to kiss her. During the long periods of sitting around and waiting in the hospital, Felicity had taken to checking for anything on the news or media about Oliver or the Arrow. It was a way she could feel not so far away from him and her place by his side. Then this article had popped up and Felicity had wanted to burst into tears. She tried to console herself that this was a good thing, Oliver was back to his usual self, romancing women he wasn't looking to make a commitment to. Ones he could easily slot into his life and then just as easily discard. Status quo returned. All was right with the universe. Only Felicity's universe wasn't in such a great place. For all the numerous amount of times she'd told herself what had happened between Oliver and herself wasn't real, this picture and article still really hurt her. It was because it had been real for her, even though it hadn't been for Oliver. She'd meant her declarations of love and devotion. For Oliver it was the XR-320 talking. Felicity had tried to tell herself that over and over but her stupid hopeful little heart hadn't protected itself enough. Was there any kind of protection strong enough to remain impervious to Oliver Queen telling you he loved and adored you, wanted to make a love story with you? Felicity doubted it.

Felicity resolutely closed the picture. "Stick with the plan, Felicity," she ordered herself. "It's a good plan where we don't end up looking like the idiot we know we are." Felicity grimaced. "And stop talking to yourself. It makes you look weird and we don't need to advertise that stuff."

"Who are you talking to?"

Felicity jumped and swung her chair around to see Diggle walking towards her. "Just me," she said blushingly. "Don't judge."

"Hey, I talk to myself all the time. It's the only way to get intelligent conversation around this place." Diggle grinned down at her. "Although now that you're back maybe there won't be such slim pickings in that department."

"Don't count on it," said Felicity ruefully as she stood up and gave the older man a big hug. "I've missed you, John."

"Missed you too," said Diggle, returning the hug tightly. "It just hasn't been the same around here without you."

"I know, I've seen the file room," said Felicity dryly.

"Yeah, Oliver's made quite the mess of that room, no way round it," said Diggle in amusement.

"How hard is it to put a file back where you found it?" asked Felicity in exasperation.

Diggle chuckled. "Beyond our guy's skill set it would seem."

"Did he make the meeting on time?"

"Just but yes, he made it. Everyone was suitably impressed, me included, now that I know you're back."

Felicity gave him a funny look. "Why would that make a difference?"

"I pretty much assumed he'd want to stay with you."

"Why?"

"Because you two have a lot to talk about."

Felicity didn't like the way Diggle said that. "What kinds of things?" she asked nervously.

"That's between you and Oliver but I know you haven't had a chance to really talk about everything that happened between you and Oliver really wants to do that."

Of course he did. He wanted to make sure Felicity hadn't taken any of the things he'd said to heart. Felicity couldn't blame him. "We can talk later," said Felicity, keeping up a brave face. "It's not really a big deal."

Diggle eyed her speculatively. "It isn't?"

Felicity shrugged. "Of course not. Just another day at Team Arrow. No biggie."

"Mm," said Diggle, not sounding very convinced and Felicity made a mental note to try and make sure she did a better job convincing Oliver of her casualness over this whole situation.

**A/N****: And so the dance begins…**


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N****: Hello my little cheese-smeared nachos! Hope you had a lovely weekend. As previously stated I worked, so yeah, Aunty Lou is tired and her house is a complete tip. I wish some of the freeloaders around here would actually help with the housework instead of creating more. **

**Hank has these moments of coming over all artistic and wants to let his creative juices flow… well, let's just say that ISN'T a figure of speech when it comes to him. Ugh… they just don't make cleaning products to get monkey juice off walls, that's all I'm saying… or out of llama fur. **

**But anyways, none of that has anything to do with this chapter. A chapter where Olicity finally get to have a few, still moments alone together. I know you're all looking forward to that. I just want to remind you that this story still has a little while to go by way of a warning for those expecting everything to come out in the wash sooner rather than later. That being said, my fervent hope remains that you'll enjoy all the little steps closer to Olicity getting that first date of theirs. At least they're in the same town now, right? That's got to count for something. **

**And seeing as that is the case once more, just a heads up that I intend to ease back a little on the posting pedal. You've had daily updates for a while now and I'll most likely slow down a bit now. I'll see how I go in just giving myself a bit of breathing room with the posting. So yeah, not sure when the next chapter will be but hopefully it won't be that far away. **

**And without further ado, the chapter…**

**CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT**

Oliver took a deep breath and willed himself to calm down. It had been a long, distracted day which he'd spent trying to focus on the multi-billion dollar deals being made when all he could really think about was Felicity. The meeting had dragged on and on as details were hashed out and now it almost five o'clock and Oliver was finally back in the office. He walked into the file room, knowing he'd find Felicity there. She was there, sitting on the floor, shoeless and painstakingly putting all the files back in order. They were stacks of them all laid out neatly in alphabetical order with over half the room cleared. She looked up as he walked in. "I come bearing gifts of contrition." Oliver held out the paper cup holder he was hanging onto with two Styrofoam cups in it. "Refreshments."

Felicity smiled. "You brought me green tea?"

Oliver put down the tray and shrugged out of his coat before picking up the tray again and taking a seat on the ground beside her. "I was going to get you green tea but then I remembered the state of this room and thought you'd need something more fortifying. I know you're on a health kick and everything, but I really felt like this situation called for coffee."

Felicity looked suddenly emotional, like he'd just offered her his kidney or something. She grabbed his arm. "I have never felt closer to another human being than I do to you right now," she said unsteadily, looking very relieved.

Oliver knew she was talking about the coffee but her declaration still made his heart skip a beat.

Felicity blushed, removing her hand from his arm. "Sorry," she said awkwardly, "don't know why I said that." She wrinkled her nose adorably. "I'm just pretty excited about the coffee."

"So I see," said Oliver handing it over to her.

Felicity avoided his gaze, taking a sip of her coffee as Oliver moved so his back was against the wall like Felicity's.

Felicity gave an uneven sigh. "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you too," said Oliver quickly, turning to look at her and then he saw that Felicity had the coffee cup up to her cheek, nuzzling it and realized she was talking to the coffee. _Damn it!_

She looked a little taken aback at his declaration. "I missed you as well," said Felicity unsteadily.

"More or less than the coffee?" asked Oliver only half-joking.

"I was apart from the coffee for longer—"

_Great, he didn't even rate above a caffeinated beverage._ He shouldn't have opened that Pandora's box. Oliver felt his morale dwindling.

"But I missed you more, Oliver," said Felicity quietly. She gave him a little smile. "Of course I did. You're this huge part of my world."

_Okay, that was more like it_. Oliver was heartened by Felicity's reassurance. "I'm glad," he said sincerely. "You had me worried there for a minute."

"You don't have to worry about me," said Felicity, going back to sipping her coffee and avoiding looking at him.

"I can't help it," said Oliver, watching her profile carefully. "A lot has happened to you recently, Felicity. I just need to know you're okay."

"I'm okay," said Felicity easily. She threw him a quick glance. "How are you feeling?"

"Relieved you're back where you belong." Okay, he'd definitely said that aloud. Oliver waited nervously for her response.

Felicity gave a little laugh. "Yeah, there is no doubt I'm needed around these parts." She looked around the room. "Talk about opening the floodgates of chaos. Here's hoping there isn't this kind of mess at the lair." Felicity suddenly frowned. "Nobody touched my chair, did they? While I was gone."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean they didn't adjust it or anything, right?" asked Felicity in concern. "It took me days to get that chair at the perfect height and angle for me to sit at."

"Is that a big deal?" asked Oliver uncertainly.

"Of course it is. I sit at that desk a lot and I had it perfectly set up so that I didn't get any back or neck strain. It literally took me hours to find that perfect sweet spot."

_Uh oh._

Felicity gave him a sharp look. "No one has been messing with my chair, have they?"

Oliver panicked. "I think Diggle may have done something to it," he lied. Oliver couldn't be responsible for messing up something else Felicity had taken so long to get just right. "He's a lot taller than you, you know."

"But you've all got your own chairs," said Felicity in exasperation. "Why mess with mine?"

"Maybe Digg didn't know you had your seat set up just so." Oliver pulled a face. "And maybe you should write a list of things you don't want us touching next time you go away." Oliver prayed that wasn't going to be for a long time now.

Felicity shook her head. "Boy, I leave you two alone for five minutes and it's anarchy city."

"You probably shouldn't leave us again then… ever."

Felicity looked suddenly worried. "I'm sorry I was gone for so long, Oliver. I know that must have been inconvenient for you."

That wasn't the word he would have chosen. "It was your mom, Felicity," he said quietly. "I wouldn't have wanted you anywhere else but with her." He watched her face cloud over. "Everything is alright with her, isn't it?"

Felicity put a valiant smile on her face. "Yes, she's doing well and has a really good mindset about the rehab stuff. She took a few steps on the first day, so that was encouraging."

"That's great she's so motivated," said Oliver warmly.

"I think she's trying to impress the physiotherapist," said Felicity wryly. "He's very cute."

Oliver tried not to let his immediate jealousy register on his face. "You think he's cute?" he asked, trying to sound casual about the whole thing.

"I think he's too young for her," grimaced Felicity. "But Mom will be Mom, so what are you gonna do, right?"

That hadn't answered his question but Oliver tried to tell himself there were a couple of states between Felicity and this no name guy. It made him feel slightly better.

Felicity looked down at her coffee cup, swirling it and then sent him a quick look. "You know, I was really fortunate to get Mom into that rehab center. It's just lucky her insurance covered it."

"That was lucky," agreed Oliver.

"I didn't realize how lucky we were until I reread Mom's insurance policy and saw she wasn't covered for rehabilitation costs," continued on Felicity calmly. "But yet we still had a place at rehab, fully paid for, with all the care she could possibly need." She was looking directly at him now. "What are the odds of something like that happening?"

Oliver feigned continuing ignorance. "Like you said, sometimes you just get lucky."

"And sometimes when you hack into the rehab centers computer you find out that all of my mother's medical expenses were paid for by an Adam Green. Which oddly enough is the exact same pseudonym name you use when you want to do something anonymously."

Oliver just looked back at her, still not admitting to anything. "Wow, that is a coincidence."

Felicity tilted her head. "Oliver."

"Felicity."

"You paid for my mother's medical expenses," she said softly.

He shrugged, not wanting her to make a big deal out of it. "We have a really comprehensive medical plan here at Queen Consolidated."

"It's too much," said Felicity emotionally.

"How is making sure your mother, the woman who raised you single handedly, is given the best possible care she can be get, too much?" he argued.

"I'm going to have to pay you back, you realize that, don't you?"

"You'll do no such thing," said Oliver firmly. "You always take such good care of me, here at the office, out on the street and everywhere else in between. Let me take care of you and your mother for a change. I couldn't do much for you while you were going through all this stuff with your mom. Let me do this, Felicity, please."

She swallowed hard, blinking back tears. "Thank you, Oliver. You don't know what this means to me."

"I know that I'd do anything to have a second chance at saving my mom," said Oliver unsteadily, "but it's too late for us. I'm just glad it wasn't too late for you and your mother."

Felicity bit her bottom lip and gave a watery smile. "I thought I was going to lose her."

Oliver reached out and took her hand, squeezing it tightly. "But you didn't and that's the important thing." Her hand felt small and warm in his. Oliver resisted the urge to kiss the soft skin on the back of her hand. Baby steps, don't rush this, he reminded himself.

Felicity squeezed his hand back and nodded, hastily wiping away a tear from behind her glasses. "Sorry," she said with an embarrassed little laugh, "I'm kind of emotional these days."

"Don't apologize, you have every right to be after all that you've been through these last few weeks with the stress and everything." _Okay, this was it._ "And I know I was a big part of that stress." Oliver's expression became full of contrition. "Felicity, I'm so sorry for everything I put you through after I was poisoned."

"It wasn't your fault, Oliver. Like you said, you were poisoned and not in your right mind."

"I scared you," he said darkly. "All I can think about is your face out on that mountain. How you said my name and looked so afraid—" He stopped abruptly, still finding it hard to talk about. "I hate knowing I did that to you."

Felicity gave him a sympathetic look. "You didn't, Oliver, the toxin in your system did all that. It was you who saved me." Her expression became pained. "But please, don't ever throw yourself off a cliff for me again. I died a thousand deaths thinking that you'd killed yourself to protect me." There were fresh tears in her eyes.

"I'd do anything to protect you, Felicity," said Oliver earnestly. "And I'd do that again if it meant saving your life."

Felicity closed her eyes and didn't look particularly happy to hear that. "Let's hope it never comes down to something like that again because I don't want that, Oliver." She took a deep breath and put a resolute smile to her lips. "I'm just glad that you're feeling better and everything can go back to normal now."

"Normal?"

"Yes, you know, the way they use to be."

He watched her expression carefully. "Is that what you want?"

"Of course. Don't you?"

"I want you to feel safe around me again, Felicity," he said slowly, choosing his words carefully, "but I feel like there are other things we should really discuss."

Felicity's screwed her face up. "Oliver, I think we can both agree that things were said and done at the cabin that neither one of us really wanted to have happen."

Oliver's brow furrowed. "Like what exactly?"

"Like some unintentional nudity and talk about butts and ducks and saying things to one another that well, weren't exactly accurate."

Oliver tensed. "What things?"

Felicity looked stressed at being cornered this way. "You know, stuff. Like… like you thinking I was pregnant." She looked unhappy. "I just want you to know that I was just a bit bloated that day and the shirt I was wearing made me look puffier than I really was and—"

"Felicity, that had nothing to do with it and you didn't look bloated," said Oliver unevenly. "I had this dream. A dream where we were together and you were having my baby and it was so real and I just woke up… confused… I guess."

She blinked. "Oh."

"But everything is really clear to me now," he rushed to assure her, keeping a tight hold of her hand. "It's like I came out of that toxic fog and could see things exactly as they were, as they always were but I'd been too blind or stubborn before to be really honest about it."

"That's great, Oliver," said Felicity emotionally. "I'm really happy for you. I can't imagine how horrible that whole ordeal must have been for you. I know how important control is to you. It must have been so hard to feel it slipping away from you."

"What was hard was coming out of that and knowing I'd put people's lives I really cared about in danger," said Oliver earnestly, keeping very direct eye contact with her. "I just want to make everything right again, Felicity and I haven't been able to do that with you so far away and now that you're home, I need to make sure you understand everything."

"I understand completely, Oliver." Suddenly she let go of his hand and was smiling at him brightly. "Like I said, you don't have to worry about me. Everything is going to go back to the way it was."

"No, that isn't—"

Felicity looked at her watch. "Boy, look at the time. I'd better get going. I'm going to be late." She gave a light little laugh. "I'm turning into you."

Oliver blinked, turned around by Felicity's sudden change in mood. He thought they were getting somewhere with their honest talk but now all Felicity seemed to want to do was leave. "Late for what?"

"I've got a date."

The roaring sound was back in Oliver's ears. "You've got a what?"

"Date," said Felicity easily, standing up.

Oliver scrambled to his feet, unable to believe what he'd just heard. "How can you have a date? You've only been back in town for five minutes."

"I met him on the plane last night," said Felicity blithely as she walked out into the corridor and down to her desk outside his office. "We got to talking and one thing led to another and then Tim invited me to try out that new French restaurant on the Northside with him."

"And you said yes?" asked Oliver in disbelief. How could this be happening? Oliver wasn't prepared for this at all.

Felicity collected her coat and handbag. "Sure, why not?" She shrugged. "He seemed like a nice guy."

"But you don't know anything about him," protested Oliver, watching her walk back around from behind her desk to come and stand in front of him.

"That's kind of the point of the date," said Felicity calmly. "To find out things about him."

Oliver was just stunned. He couldn't wrap his head around the fact Felicity was actually contemplating a date with another man after all that they'd been through. This was totally unacceptable.

Felicity gave him a very sweet smile. "Thank you for everything you've done for me and my mom, Oliver. You'll never know what that means to me." And then she was reaching out and hugging him.

Oliver lost the capacity for further speech the moment Felicity wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her body against his. It was like Oliver was finally able to breathe again. He returned the hug, dropping his head down so that their cheeks were touching and time stood still. But he didn't want her gratitude. He wanted so much more from Felicity. Oliver finally found his voice. "I just want you to be happy, Felicity," he rasped, finding he was still reeling from her abrupt reappearance in his life.

"And I want the same for you, Oliver." She broke the hug and smiled up at him. "You should give Miranda a call and see if she's busy tonight. I know today must have been a drag for you. You deserve a little fun."

Oliver looked at her blankly. "Miranda?"

"You two looked like you were having a good time at the charity gala," said Felicity brightly, putting on her coat. "You should see if she's free for dinner tonight." She brushed her ponytail free of her coat. "Unless you've already made plans with her, of course."

Oliver didn't know what the hell Felicity was talking about. "Wh-what?"

"I saw you and her together on one of those celebrity gossip sites," said Felicity breezily. "You two looked good together." She strung her bag over her shoulder.

"No-no… it wasn't like that," stuttered Oliver, completely caught off by this turn of events. "We're not… I'm not—" but Felicity was already at the elevator.

She turned and gave him a little wave. "See you tomorrow and have fun." And then Felicity was gone.

Oliver just stood there, frozen to the spot and not understanding what the hell had just happened…

**A/N****: Okay, place your bets – who thinks Felicity's date is going to go smoothly? Who thinks there is a chance her date might find himself involved in an arrow-related incident? Who thinks Felicity is just bluffing about having a date altogether? Who thinks Oliver is going to ask Miranda out to prove a point? Who thinks baby hedgehogs are made when angels fart? All bets have to be made in Botswanan pulas – sorry for any inconvenience. **


	39. Chapter 39

**A/N****: The date, yes, it's real and it's happening. Not the date you were rooting for, I'm guessing but I hope you'll enjoy it anyways.**

**Not doing a long intro today because pretty tired. Work is kicking my butt and I'm running late just to post this chapter. I've had 4 resignations in the last two weeks from work so I'm running around trying to get positions authorized so I can start the recruiting process. Ugh, hate all that stuff – sooo much paperwork? Plus I'm training another newcomer in my department while doing all that and last night one of our instruments stopped working overnight so I had to go in at 2am and perform CPR on it to get it back on its feet… casters? Anyways, I'm a little ragged around the edges because of it. Even Hank says I'm looking a bit rough and for a guy who thinks the height of good grooming is pulling fleas off his butt and eating them, that's not a great thing to hear. **

**But, here's the chapter and hopefully it'll give you a taste of what is to come in future installments of this little saga…**

**CHAPTER THIRTY NINE**

"I've heard really good things about this restaurant. I hope you're going to like it."

Felicity looked up from her menu and smiled across the table at her date. "I'm sure I'll love it."

"I'm glad you said yes when I asked you out," commented the sandy-colored hair young man.

"I'm glad you asked, Tim," said Felicity simply. Very glad, in fact, because the man with the easy smile and pleasant manner was a perfect buffer for her feelings for one Starling City billionaire. Felicity had spent the last two weeks wondering how on earth she was going to be able to keep her feelings in check around Oliver after what had happened between them. For Oliver there had been an antidote to his intense feelings for her. For her, there was nothing. Felicity was hopelessly in love with a man who would never feel the same way without the aid of a noxious gas. She knew returning to that reality, after the taste of what could have been in a different universe, had been something which had been daunting the hell out of Felicity. How was she meant to act all normal around Oliver now? How was she meant to block out his passionate declarations of love and devotion and even more fervent kisses. _Those kisses_. Felicity's hands tightened on the menu. Memories of those kisses still had her waking up in the middle of the night in a sweaty mess.

Which was why meeting Tim was so perfect. He seemed like a nice, uncomplicated guy and even though Felicity knew that she wasn't ready to get serious about anyone else right then, he was a welcome distraction from the turmoil of her feelings. They'd have a pleasant evening together and Oliver would think she was fine and moving on with her life and that he didn't have to feel guilty about anything. Felicity was actually very proud of how she'd managed their little chat back at the office. She could tell Oliver was on the verge of letting her down gently but at the last moment Felicity couldn't bear to hear him take back those words of love. It was with no small amount of relief she was able to preempt Oliver with news of her date, proving to him he didn't need to worry about finishing that conversation with her.

"How was your first day back at work?"

Felicity looked up from her menu. "Uneventful, which is good."

"Why?" asked Tim in amusement. "Is it usually eventful at your workplace?"

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "It has its moments," she admitted ruefully.

Tim gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Sorry, talking about work isn't really great first date material, is it?"

"Don't know, haven't been on one for a while," admitted Felicity candidly and then she grimaced. "Can you pretend I didn't just say that, please?"

Tim grinned. "It's okay. I happen to be an expert at this." He gave her a cheeky wink. "You're in good hands."

"So, what, you're a player then?" asked Felicity teasingly.

"No, I'm just a guy looking for 'the one'."

"Wow, okay, so no pressure then?"

He gave a lopsided smile. "I'm just being honest and if that means I get to meet some beautiful, amazing young women along the way, then how is that a bad thing?"

"You make it sound easy," sighed Felicity.

"It's as hard or easy as you want to make it," said Tim simply. "Look, let's make a deal. I'll be honest with you, you be honest with me. How does that sound?"

"Like it's too good to be true," said Felicity slowly, thinking about her complex relationship with Oliver. Even now she was lying to him but it was solely to protect what they already had. She'd seen how guilty Oliver had been over what he'd put her threw. If he thought she'd taken to heart any of his insistences about loving her, Felicity knew he'd continued to beat himself up about the whole thing. It would affect the relationship they did have and Felicity wanted to protect that at all costs.

"It doesn't have to be." Tim stuck out his hand to her. "Let's shake on it – to keeping it simple."

Felicity looked at his outstretched hand and smiled. She took it and then shook. "To keeping it simple."

Tim grinned back and Felicity couldn't help but wish it was this easy with Oliver.

"Felicity."

She started at the sound of Oliver's voice saying her name. Was she obsessing about him so much now she could actually hear his voice when he wasn't there?

Suddenly Oliver was appearing from behind her and standing by the table, looking down at her. Felicity blinked, wanting to make sure he wasn't just an apparition. "Oliver?" she said in disbelief. He was looking ever so slightly flushed, breathing a little uneven and was now sans his coat and tie, shirt sleeves rolled up to the elbow. Suddenly her stomach dropped. "Is something wrong?" Felicity asked urgently. "Something back at… umm… the office?" She was suddenly very aware that they weren't alone.

Tim was looking at Oliver with great interest, so much so he hadn't gotten around to letting go of Felicity's hand yet. "You're Oliver Queen," he said, clearly impressed before looking back at Felicity. "You didn't tell me you worked for Oliver Queen, Felicity."

"Ah… we weren't talking about our jobs, remember?" said Felicity weakly and then looked back at Oliver. "What's wrong? What's happened?"

Oliver's eyes were boring into hers. "We didn't finish our conversation."

"What?" asked Felicity in confusion.

"Our conversation back at the office," repeated Oliver intently. "We didn't finish it."

_Oh no, not here, not now._ Felicity swallowed hard. "I really don't think now is the time or place, Oliver." She sent Tim an uneven smile. "Sorry about this."

Oliver finally acknowledged the other man's presence by giving him an impatient look.

"Hi," said Tim quickly, still smiling. "I'm Tim. Tim Cruise… no relation."

Oliver just continued to stare at him with an imposing expression on his face.

"Sometimes people think we're related," continued on Tim, sounding a little nervous now as Oliver didn't speak. "I'm a big fan of yours. It was amazing how you survived that island and made it back to civilization the way you did. I bet you've got a lot of stories to tell." He looked up at Oliver expectantly.

Oliver meanwhile just turned his attention back to Felicity. "I need to talk to you."

"I'm busy now," said Felicity, flustered. She didn't want to have that talk with him, not tonight. She could steel herself for it overnight and deal with it tomorrow. "And-and you're being rude."

Oliver glanced at Tim and then his gaze settled on the fact that Felicity and the other man were still holding hands. He stuck out his hand to the younger man. "Oliver Queen," he introduced himself abruptly. Tim was forced to let go of Felicity's hand to shake Oliver's.

"Hi," said Tim, "nice to meet you."

"And you, Ted."

"Tim."

"What?"

"My name's Tim… like Tom Cruise but it's Tim… remember?"

"Aha," said Oliver, sounding utterly disinterested. "I'm sure Todd here—"

"Tim."

"—wouldn't mind if I borrowed a minute of your time, Felicity." His attention was locked solely on Felicity. "Isn't that right, Tom?"

"Tim."

Felicity pressed her lips together, refusing to deal with this right then. Today had just been too emotionally wrought already. She dug her heels in stubbornly. "Oliver," said Felicity in a low voice, "we'll talk about this tomorrow, when I'm not on a date. So why don't you just get back in your car—"

"I walked here," Oliver interrupted her.

"Walked?" repeated Felicity in surprise.

"Okay, I ran."

"But-but that's like nearly thirty blocks," she said in disbelief.

"Thirty-two," he corrected her.

Tim gave him an impressed look. "Wow, that's hard core, man. And you've barely broken a sweat. What's that, a lot of spin classes or something to get that kind of cardio?"

Oliver didn't even look at him. "No," he said tersely.

"What's your time over a mile?" asked Tim with interest.

Oliver looked to be restraining himself as he turned to look at the other man. "Look, Todd—"

"Tim."

Oliver made a dismissive hand gesture. "Fine, whatever. Do you have something else you could be doing right now?"

Tim looked a little taken aback. "Umm… I guess I could go and look at the fish tanks," he said hesitantly, glancing over at the large wall of sea water fish on decorative display in the restaurant.

"That would be great, why don't you do that?"

"Oliver!" said Felicity in outrage. "Don't tell Tom—"

"Tim."

Felicity blushed. "I'm so sorry. Don't tell Tim to go and watch fish in the middle of our date."

"I didn't," protested Oliver, "it was his idea."

"I don't mind, really," said Tim, starting to rise.

"I mind," snapped Felicity. "Sit down, Tim."

"Tom." Tim grimaced and pulled a face as he accidentally incorrectly corrected her. "No wait, sorry, you were right." He shook his head. "This is getting confusing."

"You don't seem very sure of your own name," said Oliver, fixing him with a hard look. "What's that about?"

"Oliver," said Felicity in exasperation. "Stop it. You're making Tim—"

"If that really is his name," said Oliver flatly, still casting suspicious looks Tim's way.

"—uncomfortable," finished off Felicity determinedly. "Would you please go?"

"I just need to finish our conversation," said Oliver, obviously intent on not letting this go.

"Please, Oliver," she groaned.

"I said I just wanted you to be happy," said Oliver, his gaze refusing to leave hers, "but that wasn't true."

"You-you don't want me to be happy?" asked Felicity in shock.

He gave an impatient shake of my head. "Of course I do but what I meant to say was that I don't want you to be happy with anyone else but me," he said doggedly.

Felicity stared up at him, her mouth falling open a little. "Oh," she breathed shakily.

Tim pulled his napkin off his knee. "You know, I think I will go and check out those fish after all."

Felicity barely registered Tim leaving the table, all she could do was stare up at Oliver.

"Say something," Oliver said, watching her every expression like a hawk.

"I-I wasn't expecting this," said Felicity faintly. She closed her eyes and put a hand over her mouth. Felicity did her best to compose herself. She let her hand drop away from her mouth and then looked up at Oliver with a lot of concern. "Oliver, you're still under the influence of the XR-320."

Oliver looked taken aback. "Wh-what, no, no I'm not."

Of course he was going to say that. Oliver had been in denial about the effects of that gas on him all along. It was the only thing which made sense right now. Oliver Queen wasn't rash and impulsive like this, not over a woman. He was measured and reserved and the fact that Felicity now realized he was acting jealous about her going on date with another man just confirmed her theory. Felicity had thought all of this was behind her, that she didn't have to be strong for both of them anymore but that didn't look like it was the case. "Oliver, I know you think—"

"I don't think, I know," said Oliver sharply. He scowled fiercely at her. "I am in my right mind, Felicity. I know what I'm doing."

Felicity tried to choose her next words carefully. "Maybe you're right, maybe we should go and talk somewhere, just the two of us."

"You're humoring me," said Oliver in horror. "Stop it!"

Felicity held up a calming hand to him. "It's alright, Oliver, there is no reason to get upset."

"I am not upset!" he shouted.

A lot of heads turned in the restaurant, looking at them over Oliver's loud proclamation.

Felicity grimaced. "Okay, you're not upset," she agreed quickly. "But why don't we just get out of here, hmm?"

"I'm not a danger to these people or you," said Oliver tersely. "Stop treating me like I'm some backward child you have to manage."

Felicity fixed a bright smile on her face. "That's not what I'm doing, Oliver. But you wanted us to talk and I think we can do that a lot better away from all of these people, don't you?"

"You're still doing it!" said Oliver in outrage. "I'm not under the influence of the toxin. Stop treating me like I am!"

"Of course you're not, Oliver," said Felicity unevenly. She reached out and took his hand. "Everything is going to be alright."

Oliver shook her hand off and glared down at her. "Stop that! Look, I'm not some obsessive stalker who can't get enough of you. I'm in complete control of my faculties. You want proof? Fine! Go back to your date, have your meal, hell, have sex in the cloakroom for all I care. It doesn't bother me. My heart isn't going to explode."

"Oliver—"

"No really, sorry I interrupted your evening. Go back to holding Ted's hand or whatever else you want to hold of his," snapped Oliver and then he was stalking out of the restaurant, leaving a flustered Felicity in his wake.

She looked around at the other patrons of the restaurant who were now staring at her with varying degrees of interest. Felicity gave a weak smile. "We're rehearsing a play," she told them unevenly. Felicity didn't know why she felt the urge to try and explain what had just happened, particularly when she wasn't entirely sure herself.

"Everything okay?"

Felicity looked up as Tim took a seat across from her again. "Ah, yeah, everything's fine," she said unsteadily even though that was a complete lie. "Sorry about all of that. I-I don't know what got into Oliver." That was another lie. So much for her agreement with Tim about total honesty. That was easier said than done with her life. Felicity knew it was the toxin somehow still controlling Oliver's emotions but how could she explain that to Tim? What if this was permanent? What if Oliver was going to be this erratic around her forever? Felicity didn't like to think about what that could mean for their relationship.

"You're the one," said Tim calmly.

She stared at him wide-eyed. "Seriously? After all that?" Was every man doomed to lose their mind around her… and not in the good way?

Tim just smiled. "You're the one, Felicity, just not for me. I think that guy is the one who just left."

Felicity shook her head, expression becoming pinched. "No, it's not what you think, Tim. Oliver and I are just friends."

"You're really not."

"He's just confused right now," said Felicity emotionally. "Oliver doesn't know what he's saying or feeling." This was a nightmare. Oliver was still obviously suffering after effects from the XR-320. He hadn't been symptomatic when she'd been away but now she was back, Felicity could see her presence had triggered some of his old delusions. She was scared. What did this mean? Would she have to stay away from Oliver forever? It was a depressing thought that made Felicity want to burst into tears.

"He didn't look that confused to me," observed Tim.

"Trust me," said Felicity unhappily, "he is." Confused and disorientated and it was up to her to try and save Oliver from himself once more. Felicity only hoped she had the strength to go through this all again without joining Oliver in his insanity, which right then, didn't sound like such a horrible place to be. Not exactly an encouraging thought for the person who was meant to be saving the drowning man when all Felicity really wanted to do was join Oliver in the water and sink under those waters of delirium with him.

And just when she thought her life couldn't get any more complicated…

**A/N****: I know, now you're a different kind of frustrated, right? But, for me, I've always wanted to see Oliver properly chase Felicity… and for her not to make it too easy for him, you know, like every other woman in his life. Oliver's got his work cut out for him convincing Felicity that his crazy is down to her and not to a noxious gas. Who here thinks Oliver can be very convincing when he wants to be? ;) The next chapter is going to be a big turning point for this story so I hope you'll enjoy that when it pops up. **

**Now, I've gotta run to work… see ya. :D **


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N****: Hi all, next chapter is up. :D **

**I'm hoping this chapter will clarify where both parties are at and it'll make them a little easier to sympathize with… even if you do still want to crack them over the head with something blunt and heavy. It's pretty interesting on the show ATM how the Olicity angst is heavy but personally, I'm glad it's at the beginning of the season, because now it's clear that Oliver's arc is working out to be both Arrow and Oliver… and it's been well established in the first episode that Oliver wants Felicity. I found it very interesting that they seem to be transposing the Olicity love story over the top of the Lauliver one. **

**In the first season, when Laurel was trying to work out why Tommy broke up with her she asked for Oliver to tell her he wasn't in love with her and he couldn't do it. S3 and now he's saying those words to Felicity. Lauliver get the big kiss in S1 in the mansion with the light behind them in a moment's happiness before Oliver goes back to being the Arrow full time and they break up. Olicity gets the light behind them in S3 premier just before they break up. I was reading a great break down of the S3 premiere on a tumblr account – 'Olicity, Oh Yes' – from jbuffyangel and she is amazing! Basically she sees the light being used by the writers to point out the root for couple… and the torch has now been passed from Lauliver to Olicity. If you're feeling a bit fragile about where Olicity is right now, I really encourage you to read as many of her posts on that tumblr account as you can. They're brilliant, logical and very well thought out. The site takes a little while to load, but it's worth it. ;) **

**Anyways, a little off on a tangent there but I guess the point I was eventually intending to make was that I'm having my guys go through a very different kind of angst and it's much lighter stuff because Oliver has made his choice. He wants to be both Arrow and Oliver and both of those guys want and need Felicity. The tricky part is now convincing the girl. But like I said, I think Oliver is due to break a sweat when it comes to getting the girl. ;) **

**Okay, that's about it from me. I'm having fun writing the end of this story… way too much fun in fact. Bunny is running amok… poor Roy may never be the same again. Lol **

**I'm off to bed soon. Feeling a little queasy. Made the mistake of letting Hank cook dinner. It was some kind of casserole thing. He was pretty vague on the details. And, on a (hopefully) unrelated note, I'm suddenly missing three left shoes and my bath loofah. That can't be good. **

**Toodles my poodles… **

**CHAPTER FORTY**

Oliver stalked up and down the alleyway beside the restaurant, berating himself for his stupidity. He'd handled the whole thing so badly it was hard to know where to start. "Have sex with him in the cloakroom," Oliver muttered under his breath. "Why would you even say that, you moron?" he demanded of himself angrily. Now it was out there in the universe and even though Oliver knew Felicity wasn't that kind of girl, he really didn't want to be giving her any ideas. It was just when he'd walked in and seen her already holding hands with that guy, something had snapped inside of him. And then when Felicity had started to treat him with kid gloves, as though he was some kind of delusional idiot, Oliver hadn't been able to take it. "I'm perfectly fine," he ground out, still stalking up and down. "Why can't Felicity see that?" Okay, maybe his turning up at the restaurant had been a little out of the blue. Felicity had left him standing there in the office and Oliver had tried to sort through his feelings about her dismissing him like that. He'd tried to take it all in his stride and take things slowly as Diggle had warned him to but the longer Oliver had sat there at the office, the more he hadn't been able to let it go. His 'I want you to be happy' had started to haunt him as he realized that Felicity could have taken that as some kind of tacit approval for her to see other men. _It wasn't. _It really, really wasn't and the longer Oliver had dwelled on his last words to her, the more they seemed like a disaster waiting to happen.

So, Oliver had gone to the restaurant to set Felicity straight, not caring that it might be moving too fast. Felicity had to know how he felt before she made any more decisions about her life. That was only fair, right? It was important she had all the facts to be able to make an informed decision about her romantic life. A life Oliver desperately wanted to be a part of. She already had the wrong idea about him and Miranda. What else had she gotten the wrong idea about? The question haunted Oliver and he needed to set Felicity straight before something disastrous happened… like her date going well. Consequently, Oliver had made the only logical decision he could and decided he needed to talk to Felicity sooner rather than later. He hadn't taken the car because Diggle had it and that would mean explaining to Diggle what he was doing and Oliver hadn't wanted any contrary advice to what he'd decided he needed to do, which he was pretty certain the other man would have an opinion on. As for a cab, Oliver had too much nervous energy to sit still in the back of one of those, so running over to the restaurant was a perfectly reasonable thing to do. At least it had seemed that way to Oliver at the time but the way Felicity had looked at him had him a little bit worried. Running thirty-two blocks to tell someone that you wanted them to consider you as someone who could make them happy wasn't weird… was it?

And now he'd left Felicity in there with that Ted guy who was obviously only after one thing from her. A muscle ticked wildly Oliver's jaw at the thought of that. He'd made a complete mess of something which was meant to be this romantic moment between him and Felicity. Oliver grimaced as he continued to trudge up and down the alleyway. Maybe his first mistake was declaring his attentions on a date. A date which he, technically, hadn't been invited on. In retrospect that might have been a little reckless of him but really, it was that idiot's Todd's fault. He'd tried to speak to Felicity alone but the other guy wouldn't take a hint. What was wrong with the man? Clearly Ted was mentally deficient and what would Felicity want with a guy like that? Really, Felicity should be thanking him for him trying to help her not have her time wasted by this loser. The only thing was, she was still with Tex in the restaurant and he was out here, by himself. Nothing had gone to plan tonight and Oliver didn't know what to do about that. Felicity thought he was still under the influence of the XR-320 and not in his right mind, which, ironically, the thought of that was driving Oliver crazy. He had to prove to Felicity that wasn't true and the best way to do that was to stay away but that meant leaving her in the clutches of that sexual predator, Tad. He was trapped in a conundrum of his own making and that was irritating the hell out of him right then.

"Oliver?"

Oliver stopped his frenetic pacing at the sound of Felicity's voice and swung around. Felicity was standing at the entrance of the alleyway, her coat on and looking at him with a smile. A huge amount of relief surged through Oliver. She'd chosen him. _Thank God._ A huge smile split his face as he immediately hurried up to her. "Felicity," said Oliver happily, "you're here." He took her hands and squeezed them tightly.

"Yes, I'm here," she said brightly. "Everything is going to be fine, Oliver."

The smile slipped from Oliver's face and he abruptly let go of her hands and took a step back. "Don't do that," he said sharply.

"Don't do what?" asked Felicity calmly.

"Don't treat me like I'm a child you have to placate," said Oliver tightly. Felicity still thought he was acting out because of the toxin. This was a nightmare.

"That isn't what I'm doing, Oliver," said Felicity soothingly. "But let's go somewhere private to talk, okay, just the two of us?"

"You're trying to get me away from people," said Oliver accusingly, his face darkening. "You think I'm about to go crazy and hurt people."

"Nobody has to get hurt," said Felicity quickly. "I'm here. That's what you wanted, wasn't it?"

"I want you here because you want to be here, not because you think I'm going to start killing people," said Oliver in outrage. "There is a pretty big difference."

"I want to be here, Oliver," said Felicity hastily. "Of course I do. The important thing is that we just stay calm." Her gaze drifted to his forehead.

Oliver put a self-conscious hand up to the vein he knew was pulsating madly. "You leave Mr. Throbby out of this," he said accusingly. "He has nothing to do with it." Oh God, was he now referring to that stupid ass vein by name now? _What had this woman done to him? _

Felicity held up conciliatory hands. "No one is saying anything about Mr. Throbby, Oliver. He's barely noticeable."

That was a lie. Oliver could feel the thing pulsing under his fingers. He dropped his hand away and willed himself to remain calm. "I am in complete and total control of myself, Felicity," he ground out from behind clenched teeth. "I am not being influenced by the XR-320 at all."

"Okay."

"It's true."

"Okay."

Oliver made a noise of frustration. "I'm telling you I'm fine!"

"And I'm agreeing with you."

"It's the way you're agreeing with me. It's obvious that you're completely and utterly not agreeing with me." Oliver glared at her. "Stop it!"

"You want me to stop agreeing with you?" asked Felicity in consternation.

"Yes, if you don't agree with me, stop agreeing with me," he said angrily.

"Fine," snapped Felicity, losing her patience with him. "I don't agree with you because you're clearly out of your mind right now,"

"How can you even say that to me?" asked Oliver in horror. "What about me says crazy?" he demanded to know. Oliver didn't mean to sound so belligerent but he'd rather have Felicity arguing with him then treating him with kid gloves.

"Where do I start?" shot back Felicity. "You're still clearly suffering from after effects of that horrible gas. It's screwed up your brain around me, done some real damage."

"A man tells you he wants to pursue a relationship with you and your first thought is he must be brain damaged?" asked Oliver in disbelief. "I'm beginning to think you have some real self-esteem issues, Felicity."

Felicity put her hands on her hips and glared up at him. "What am I meant to think about you running thirty blocks—"

"Thirty-two blocks." _Why did he say that?_ That probably wasn't helping his case.

"And crashing my date and telling me you only want me to be happy with you?" asked Felicity in frustration.

It did sound a little odd to hear her say that back to him like that but Oliver wasn't giving up. He gave her a hopeful look. "That it was romantic?"

"It's not romantic, it's crazy," she said in agitation.

"What's crazy about it?" asked Oliver indignantly.

"The fact that you don't know you're behaving wildly out of character is reason enough to me to prove you're still not out of the woods when it comes to the aftereffects of the XR-320," said Felicity emotionally.

"I promise you, Felicity, I am completely woodless." Oliver frowned. _That didn't sound right._ "I am without woods." _Nope, still not right_. "I'm in a desert." _Give it up, you idiot._

Felicity shook her head and looked away. "You're not being yourself, Oliver. None of what you think you are feeling is real."

Oliver took an urgent step towards her and grabbed her arms. "Felicity, listen to me—"

"No, you listen to me," she countered determinedly, even though there was a waver in her voice. "Take a look at what you're doing. The extent of our relationship used to be you giving me the occasional pat on the head and telling me what a good girl I was—"

"First of all, I have _never_ patted you on the head," said Oliver indignantly. "And second of all, you know there was way more to us than some kind of boss/employee working relationship so don't you dare oversimplify this, Felicity Smoak."

Felicity avoided eye contact after him challenging her but she continued on regardless. "And now, you're running half-way across town in some kind of huge romantic gesture that belongs in a Meg Ryan/Tom Hanks movie—"

Oliver's gaze became intent. "So you _did_ think it was romantic then?" he asked a little triumphantly._ Progress_. Oliver couldn't help but smile.

Felicity threw up her hands. "_So_ not the point I was trying to make."

"What is your point, Felicity?"

"My point is what am I meant to think about all this, Oliver, when the only thing that has changed between us between pats on the head—"

Oliver opened his mouth to protest that part again but Felicity quickly preempted him.

"Okay, fine, pats on the shoulder then, to suddenly breaking up my dates with saying you're the one who is meant to make me happy, is a near lethal dose of mind-altering gas," finished off Felicity unhappily.

"I don't have to be out of my mind to have feelings for you, Felicity," said Oliver intently. "In fact, it's kind of the other way round. You're amazing."

"So, what, you're saying that you didn't know your own mind before but after being gassed, going into a psychotic meltdown and nearly dying, you can see everything clearly now?" asked Felicity in disbelief.

"You say that like it couldn't possibly be a thing," protested Oliver. "When it happens to be pretty damn accurate. Traumatic events can clarify a lot in your life, that's a documented fact."

"And if you're still going through those traumatic events they can cloud a lot of things too," she insisted stubbornly.

"I'm over the gas thing!" Oliver didn't want to be shouting at Felicity but she was being so completely unreasonable and he couldn't help himself.

Felicity shook her head and rubbed her forehead. "Look, Oliver, you have to see that you're not acting like yourself right now."

"Maybe I don't want to act like myself anymore," he challenged her. "Particularly when it comes to women. Maybe I don't want to be how I used to with people I care about. What if I don't want to be so guarded and overthink every damn little thing until I end up frozen in my own head? What would you say to that?"

"I would say that isn't you," said Felicity quietly. "And if I were you, I'd be asking myself why the sudden change in everything that used to define me."

"Because love can do that to a person." Oliver held his breath as he put those words out between them. He hadn't planned on telling Felicity he loved her just yet but self-control around her seemed like a thing of the past for him now. Once he'd acknowledged his feelings for Felicity, it was pretty hard to put that genie back in the bottle. Oliver just wanted Felicity to know how deeply his feelings ran for her and that he was serious about wanting to pursue them with her. The only trouble was he had no way of knowing how Felicity was going to react to his declaration of love and his heart pounded painfully in his chest, waiting for her to respond.

Felicity bit her bottom lip and looked away, seeming to be collecting herself. She blew out a long breath and then looked back at him. "Oliver, I know you think all of this makes perfect sense—"

"Because it does, if you'd just think about it for a moment," he said urgently.

"I am thinking," said Felicity unevenly, "for both of us because you're not capable of seeing things clearly right now."

"Felicity—" he ground out in frustration.

"You-you don't feel this way about me," she said unsteadily. "You just think you do because the toxin has warped your brain. This isn't you, Oliver, you have to see that. This isn't how you'd act over a woman, it just isn't."

"You're not just any woman," he argued with her fiercely. "You happen to be the woman I'm in love with." _So much for taking it slowly_. Diggle was going to be mad at him but Oliver didn't care. He had to get Felicity to believe him. It was the only thing which mattered now.

"You don't love me, Oliver," said Felicity sadly. "You only think you do. It's that gas, messing with your head."

"The only one messing with my head right now is you," said Oliver in frustration. "Felicity, you have to believe what I'm telling you. I love you."

"I believe that you believe what you're saying," said Felicity quietly. "But it's not the real you talking. It can't be."

Oliver's jaw clenched in vexation. He had to come up with some way to break this stalemate between them. "Do you remember what you told me at the cabin?"

Felicity pulled a face. "I told you, that duck threw down first."

"Not the duck thing," said Oliver impatiently. "Although if you want my opinion, I think you were both at fault." Felicity gave a gasp of outrage but Oliver swiftly moved on. "I mean the part when you told me you loved me." He took a step closer, needing to see Felicity's face for this. "Was that true or where you just lying to me to try and keep me from losing my mind?" It was a question Oliver had been asking himself over and over and the only person who could answer it properly was the young woman standing in front of him.

Felicity was looking up at him with fear in her eyes. "Oliver—"

"Just answer the question," he pushed her. "Tell me the truth, Felicity. That's all I want from you." The whole world stopped as Oliver waited for her answer. His stomach turned over violently as Felicity held his entire life in her next few words.

Felicity bit her bottom lip. "You're being so unfair right now," she said accusingly, her voice wobbling.

"How am I being unfair?" he asked her intently, eyes never leaving her face.

"Be-because you are," she said unsteadily.

"Answer my question, Felicity," said Oliver determinedly. "Are you in love with me?" The answer had to be yes, it just had to be. She'd come back to him after all that had happened and there had to be a reason for that beyond needing a job. He'd put her through hell but she was still there, willingly in his life. That had to mean something.

A flash of pain crossed her face and then Felicity was squaring her shoulders and looking up at him with great determination. "Of course I'm not in love with you, Oliver Queen."

The bottom fell out of his whole world.

"Why would you even think that?" Her chin came up defiantly. "You really are crazy." And with that Felicity abruptly turned on her heel and walked away.

Oliver watched her leave, having trouble finding his next breath.

_She'd asked a question after her statement. _

Felicity was lying. Their shared tell had given her away. She really was in love with him. The roaring was back in Oliver's ears as he watched that perfect backside storm off. And that awesome butt belonged to a woman who was in love with him. Everything Felicity had said to him at the cabin was true. He felt giddy from the relief and complete joy of the moment. It was all Oliver could do not to high five the universe. "Yes!" he proclaimed loudly instead, drawing the attention of an elderly couple as they walked to their car. "She loves me," Oliver told them with a grin, just needing to tell someone.

"Good for you, honey," said the woman kindly as they kept walking by.

It was more than good, it was great. The only trouble was, Oliver wasn't sure what to do next but he did know one thing, this changed _everything_. All his carefully thought out plans of going slow and easing into this thing were gone. Felicity loved him. He'd passed the most important hurdle, now he just had to work out his next move. Oliver stood there, trying to work out how to get them past the impasse they'd found themselves at. There had to be something he could do or say that would convince Felicity this wasn't the toxin talking. All Oliver needed was a clear head to work out what that might be. The trouble was he was still experiencing a high degree of euphoria over having it confirmed that Felicity was in love with him. A clear head probably wasn't on the cards for tonight… or any other in the near future. He couldn't screw this up like he'd screwed up every other relationship he'd had with a woman. There was only one thing for it, he had to do the complete opposite of everything he'd done before. It was a plan. The only thing was Oliver had no idea of knowing if it was a good one or not. Only time would tell.


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N****: I heard some relief from my little ducklings re: Oliver knowing straight away Felicity was lying to him about the 'I don't love you' thing. Yeah, just trying to mix it up a bit with that. ;) The thing is, while Oliver is acting out of character with how overt he's being with Felicity, from a character development POV, that's pretty much why I put Oliver through so much hell for the last 30+ chapters, so I could justify him coming out the other side a changed man. I've tried to earn this man being hell bent on securing the woman he loved. The old Ollie wouldn't have done that and the Oliver fresh off the island was so muted, unless it was anger, he wouldn't have done that either. But this new, post gas exposure Oliver, well, he's someone else again. But hopefully with the things you love about him still in play… but with a couple of more things for you to enjoy added on. ;) **

**And all that is a justification for this upcoming chapter, which I hope you'll enjoy. Basically there is just a lot of emotional conversations for Olicity coming up… interspersed with some humor because you can't be serious all the time. You need to have some fun and games. **

**I've had a day off today, filled with housework and other tedium. Argh, why can't I just sit around and write all day? Why won't someone pay me to do that? I mean, 50 Shades of Grey was just a Twilight fic and now she's rolling in it. I'm not into the BDSM thing, so I'm a little bit screwed in that area. Mind you, the words 'ass-less pants' does come up in a future chapter. Haven't read the 50 Shades books… does anyone leather up in the books? Lol **

**Here's some news on Fernando Del Vecchio. His half-brother, Frank, has landed a TV gig here on Australian TV. Frank plays the Grim Llama on a series of electricity warning ads. Just go to YouTube and put in the words 'Grim Llama' and Frank will come up. I'm not going to lie… it'll probably help if you're liquored up to get the full benefit of the advert… it's a bit… umm… what's a polite way to say weird? Unique, maybe? Anyways, Frank thinks he's quite the movie star these days and Fernando Del Vecchio's nose is out of joint because he's the big success story in the family now. I tried to point out to Fernando Del Vechhio that being a professional streaker at the local cricket games around town isn't an actual job. And that creepy guy who gives him five dollars to rub his face in Fernando's butt fur doesn't count as gainful employment. I so far haven't found a law against it in my research. What I have found is that it's illegal to wear pink hot pants after midday on a Sunday in Victoria (one of our states). That's an actual law. I guess fluoro yellow ones are alright to whack on, so I'm safe but still, that seems unreasonably prejudice against pink hot pants. In the same state, it's illegal for anyone other than a licensed electrician to change a light bulb. And yes, that state houses our capital city. Makes you think, doesn't it?**

**Okay, enough about fondled llamas' butts and hot pants, let's get this show on the road, eh? **

**The chapter… **

**CHAPTER FORTY ONE**

Felicity woke with a start at the sound of pounding at her door. On reflex she was out of bed and stumbling towards the door, still half asleep. She felt like she'd just fallen asleep after coming home and obsessing half the night over her conversation with Oliver. His asking her if she was in love with him had been so cruel because the truth was she was completely and utterly in love with him. The kicker being, despite what he was saying, Oliver was never going to feel the same way, not really and to have to say those words to him and know that was just incredibly painful. Felicity knew that she'd promised herself when she thought Oliver was dying in her arms that she'd be honest about her feelings with him in the future. While she'd been away, Felicity had made a pact with herself to tell Oliver how she really felt about him and then to reassure him that nothing had to change, that they could still work together and that he wasn't to worry about her. But then she'd seen the photos of him with that Miranda woman hanging off him and there didn't seem to be any point. Why would Oliver even care if she loved him? Felicity knew Oliver cared for her but he'd never look at her the same way as someone like Miranda or Laurel.

Coming home on the plane, Felicity thought she had it all figured out. She was going to show Oliver that there was nothing to worry about with her and that they were all going to be adults and get on with their separate lives. But that was before the scene at the restaurant had happened. Oliver really believed he was in love with her and Felicity didn't know what to do about the fact he was still suffering under the effects of the gas. That meant telling him she loved him was completely off the table regardless now because it would only feed into his delusions. She had to protect him from himself but once again she was faced with the problem of who was going to protect her. It had been her last thought before finally falling into an exhausted sleep that she'd just been abruptly woken from. Felicity fumbled blindly for the locks on the door, having forgotten her glasses in her haste to get the door, eyes still not focusing properly from the deep sleep she'd been woken from. She opened the door and blinked blearily at the person on the other side.

"You didn't ask who it was," said Oliver in horror. "Who opens their door at three o'clock in the morning without asking who it is?"

Felicity tried to focus on Oliver, her fighting spirit immediately coming to the fore at the tone in his voice. "Who bangs on someone's door at three in the morning to yell at them?" she asked indignantly.

"I'm not yelling," said Oliver sharply. "I was voicing my concern."

"Loudly, you were voicing your concern loudly… at three in the morning." Felicity tried to clear her head by shaking it. "What are you doing here, Oliver?" She ran a self-conscious hand through her hair, knowing she must look a mess.

"I'm sorry I woke you." He suddenly scowled fiercely, taking in her disheveled appearance. "You were asleep," said Oliver accusingly. "How could you sleep after what happened between us tonight?"

"Is this going to be a new thing of yours, waking me in the early hours of the morning to lecture me on personal safety and sleeping habits?" asked Felicity in consternation. "Because if it is, I'm not a fan."

"No, I just don't know how you could sleep after how we left things between us," said Oliver unevenly. "But I stand behind the asking who's on the other side of the door thing. That's just common sense."

"Can any of this be called common sense right now?" asked Felicity in consternation. "Oliver, you need to go home and get some sleep. You're not thinking straight right now."

"There is nothing wrong with my thinking, it's as clear as a bell and that's why it's very important I tell you three things before you get inside your head and overthink something which is perfectly simple."

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I never understood that saying. Bells aren't clear, they're usually made of metal and you can't see through them. I mean, maybe you could say that about decorative glass bells but—"

"It means the sound of a bell tends to be a loud, distinctive sound, ones you can't miss, particularly church bells. You could always hear them clearly… hence the expression, clear as a bell."

"Hm," said Felicity thoughtfully, "guess that makes sense." She looked up at him. "Is that what you wanted to tell me? The bell thing?"

"Why would I want to talk to you about a saying about a bell at three o'clock in the morning?" asked Oliver in consternation.

"I'm having a little trouble working out why you're doing a lot of things these days, Oliver," said Felicity unsteadily. That wasn't quite true. She knew he was here because the XR-320 aftereffects where compelling him to be there but even so, Oliver wasn't acting exactly like he had before when he was under its influence. He seemed more lucid in his insanity… which didn't make any real sense but that was where they were right then.

"Felicity, just listen to me, there are only three things I want you to know," he said urgently.

"Three things that couldn't wait until morning?" she asked unevenly, still trying to gather her scatted thoughts.

"It is morning."

"I mean more morning."

"I don't see how that is a thing. Morning is morning."

"Later in the morning," said Felicity in irritation. She couldn't deal with Oliver right now. He was going to make her say something she was going to regret, like she loved him, Felicity just knew it. "When there is actual daylight."

"That's not important right now," said Oliver dismissively. "What's important is the three things."

Felicity blinked. "Seriously? We're doing this right now?"

"Yes," said Oliver determinedly. "Do you mind if we go inside to talk?"

Felicity knew instinctively that was a bad idea. Not because she didn't trust Oliver necessarily but this new impulsive Oliver combined with her own tendency to speak before thinking was a recipe for disaster. "We can talk right here." Where Felicity was less likely to forget herself completely and do something rash. Like kiss him because there was something about this talkative, oversharing Oliver that was more than a little intoxicating. Felicity pressed her lips together, ordering herself to keep her feet on the ground.

"Fine."

"You know what would be really fine? Talking about this tomorrow."

"It is tomorrow and I know you. You're already trying to explain all of this way because of the gas and I'm not going to let you do that."

"Oliver—"

He held up an imperious finger. "One, I'm not now and have not for many years, dating or thinking about any other kind of romantic encounter with Miranda Stapleton."

"But I saw—"

"We were talking and someone took a picture." Oliver grimaced. "That's not true. I was trying to get away from her and phone you and someone took a picture of us and made up a story. I have no interest in Miranda or any other woman. There is only one woman in my life right now—"

"Thea?" offered up Felicity unsteadily, trying to ignore the way her heart was beating ten to the dozen in her chest.

"Okay, two women and just so you know, Thea is not the woman I want to have a romantic relationship with."

"That's probably a good thing," said Felicity weakly.

"Agreed." Oliver arched an eyebrow. "See, not crazy."

Felicity wasn't exactly convinced. "What-what's the second thing?"

"Two, you're the one who is being unfair," said Oliver accusingly.

Felicity was taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"I feel like this is the Salem witch trials all of a sudden," said Oliver in frustration. "When they were trying to prove a woman was a witch, they'd weight her down with stones in the river and if she was innocent she'd drown and if she was a witch, she'd float and then they'd burn her at the stake."

"Oliver—"

"No, Felicity, let me finish. If I tell you that I love you and want us to be more than just friends, then I'm still under the influence of the XR-320 and you don't want anything to do with me. If I lie and say I don't love you then we're just stuck where we are, with nowhere for us to go anyway." Oliver's jaw hardened. "I feel like I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't."

Felicity's head was spinning. "Th-that isn't how it is," she protested.

"That is exactly how it is and it's not fair," said Oliver determinedly.

Felicity shook her head. "Your point is moot anyways because you're obviously still being affected by that gas and—"

"Why obviously?"

Felicity looked at him in disbelief. "Because you're standing in my doorway babbling at me like a lunatic at three in the morning, that's why."

"There is no babbling," said Oliver indignantly. "In fact I think I've made some pretty salient points which I've yet to hear you refute."

"Well, listen up, big boy, this is me refuting them," said Felicity hotly.

"You just can't say the word refute and then not back it up with actual refuting," said Oliver in agitation. He cocked his head. "And big boy?"

"I'm half asleep," grumbled Felicity. "What do you want from me?"

"What are you prepared to give me?" he countered quickly.

_Damn, she'd walked right into that_. Felicity's lips thinned. "Okay, I'm willing to concede that this current mania is slightly different to your last go round at it."

Oliver frowned suddenly. "I'm not frightening you, am I?"

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I don't know what you're going to do next, Oliver. It's a little unnerving."

"Was I so predictable before?" he asked in surprise.

Felicity just laughed and then saw Oliver was still looking at her expectantly. "Oh, wait, sorry, that was a serious question, my bad."

"You think I was predictable?" asked Oliver, taken aback.

"Something bad happens, you somehow make it all your fault, you brood for a while, do a bit of self-flagellation and then you do something heroic to fix it. Then something bad happens and you start all over again." Felicity shrugged. "It's kind of your thing. This—" she waggled a finger up and down him, "this isn't something you do, get all impulsive and sweaty and turn up at women's doorsteps at three o'clock in the morning to tell them you love them when prior to that there was no inkling of you feeling that way."

"There were inklings," he protested. "Big inklings and for your information, I _have_ done this sort of thing before."

Felicity folded her arms in front of her chest. "One, how is that meant to endear you to me and take you seriously if you do this all the time?"

Oliver went to open his mouth to defend himself but Felicity didn't give him a chance.

"And two, were these late night visits about declarations of love or random hook ups because you found yourself horny in the middle of the night?"

Oliver pursed his lips. "I wish to decline to answer that on the grounds that I might incriminate myself."

Felicity rolled her eyes. "That's what I thought. Goodnight, Oliver."

She went to close the door on him but Oliver was too quick, jamming his foot in the door and preventing her.

"Oliver, get your foot out of my door," said Felicity in frustration, trying to kick his foot free but her bare feet were no match for his larger, shoe-covered one.

"You keep ending our conversations prematurely," said Oliver in agitation. "I'd really like it if you'd stop doing that."

"It's not prematurely if there is nothing left to say," said Felicity primly. "And you being insistent like this isn't exactly helping your case that you're completely compos mentis when it comes to me." She gave him a challenging look. "What's wrong, Oliver, can't stand the thought of being apart from me?" It was stupid but Felicity kind of hoped the answer to that was still yes. She really didn't have any instincts for self-preservation around this man.

Oliver held up his hands in front of him in a placating fashion. "Okay, I'm willing to concede that I can see how my behavior tonight could be misconstrued as slightly… overwhelming… in nature, particularly given our recent history—"

"You sound like you're giving evidence in court," said Felicity dryly. "And your foot is still in my door."

"If I remove my foot will you promise not to slam the door in my face?"

"Yes."

Oliver's eyes narrowed as he looked at her intently. "That feels like a lie. The foot stays."

"You want me to trust you but you don't trust me," said Felicity roundly. "What's up with that?"

"I know I'm in my right mind, you still think I'm out of it."

"Do you blame me?"

"No, but that's what I'm trying to explain." Oliver took a deep breath. "I know this might feel sudden to you, Felicity, but I pretty much haven't been thinking about anything else since I last saw you. I haven't gotten to this place easily or lightly."

"And that place being that you're in love with me?" she said skeptically. Damn it but her heart still skipped a beat every time those words were uttered. _Stupid, hopeful heart._

Oliver gave a little dismissive snort. "No, it was easy to realize I was in love with you. The hard part was trying to convince myself that I wasn't for so long." He grimaced. "And not knowing if you could ever feel the same way after what I put you through… and if I should say anything to you about my feelings."

For a moment Felicity almost believed him. He was being so sincere and compelling, it was hard for her to remember the reality of the situation. "I see you got over that though, what with waking me in the middle of the night to tell me how you feel."

"Alright, maybe you can take a few points off for my timing but that doesn't mean you should doubt my sincerity, Felicity."

"I don't doubt it. I sincerely believe that you believe you're sincere in your sincerity."

"But you still think I'm obsessed with you," finished off Oliver flatly. "Right? That this is all the aftereffects of the XR-320 talking and I'm going to go on some kind of rampage if I can't have you?"

Felicity eyed him warily. "You seem a lot more in control than you were the first time around—"

"Because I am," said Oliver quickly.

"And less sweaty."

"Also true."

"But this obsessive need to make me believe you really do love me and not leaving me alone…" Felicity gave him a pointed look. "That's pretty much vintage crazy Oliver."

"I let you walk away," he argued with her, "after you told me you loved me, I let you walk away. Crazy Oliver wouldn't have been able to do that."

Felicity's eyes widened. "Whoa there. I said I _didn't_ love you."

Oliver gave an offhanded shrug. "We both know that was a lie. You're in love with me, Felicity."

"I am not!" she said indignantly. Felicity couldn't let Oliver believe that because it was only going to make it harder for him to come to his senses and snap out of this.

"Yes, you are and that's wonderful because I'm in love with you." He smiled down at her. "It works out perfectly."

Felicity gave a determined shake of her head. "You're not in love with me, you've got brain damage from the toxin and you're acting out because of it."

"I told you, I let you walk away, Crazy Oliver couldn't have done that."

"And now you're at my door at three in the morning, gibbering about saying I don't love you means I do. In what way is that you waving the sanity flag?"

Oliver wasn't backing down. He held her gaze unflinchingly, a warm look in his eyes. "I love you."

"No, you don't," said Felicity determinedly.

"Yes, I do," said Oliver calmly.

"No, you don't!"

His voice got a little louder. "I do."

"You don't."

"I do."

"You don't."

"Do!"

"Don't!"

Oliver balled his hands into fists, waving them about as he screwed up his face at their pointless back and forth. "You are the most frustratingly stubborn woman I've ever met!"

"If that's true, how could you possibly love me?" asked Felicity triumphantly.

"That's one of the things I love the most about you," shot back Oliver. "But that doesn't mean it still doesn't drive me crazy. Regular crazy, not throw myself off a cliff crazy."

"Doesn't that tell you something about our relationship when you have to qualify the degree of crazy in it?" she asked him in exasperation.

"Yes, it says it's awesome and can absorb a lot of things that other couples couldn't."

"We're not a couple," said Felicity doggedly, not sure how much longer she could put up this kind of resistance. Would it really be that bad to join Oliver in his madness? He seemed to be enjoying it.

Oliver held up three fingers imperiously in her face. "Three," he said with fierce determination, obviously not giving up on having his say. "You had a birthday last week, while you were in Vegas."

Felicity was a little taken aback. "You didn't have to come over here to tell me that, Oliver. I already knew that."

"You didn't let me finish. You had a birthday while you were away and I want to take you out to celebrate belatedly."

"Like, on a date?" said Felicity suspiciously. "I'm not going on a date with you, Oliver." That whole thing was just too fraught with possibilities. Possibilities Felicity wasn't sure she had the willpower to stand firm against.

"It's not a date. It's a birthday party."

Felicity hesitated. "So, there will be other people there?"

"No. It's a boutique birthday party. Very small guest list. They're all the rage now."

"So small that there are only two people's names on the guest list, right?" Felicity gave him a disbelieving look. "That isn't a thing, Oliver. You're talking about a date."

"You seem intent on calling this a date," said Oliver straight-faced. "So if that makes you feel better, then sure, it's a date."

"It doesn't make me feel better and I'm not going out with you." Felicity wished her voice wasn't so shaky over that assertion.

Oliver held up four fingers now. "Number four is you telling me something."

"Wait, what?" protested Felicity. "You said there were only three things you wanted to tell me and now suddenly—" She didn't get any further as Oliver stifled her protests with a kiss. Felicity froze as Oliver's arms went around her waist, completely distracted by the warm, gentle pressure of his lips on hers. Despite her best intentions, Felicity couldn't stop herself from sighing in pleasure at the soft caress. Oliver's kisses were even better than she remembered. How was that possible? Oliver took advantage of her sigh, sliding his tongue into her mouth and deepening the kiss. Felicity's bare toes curled into the carpet as she tasted him once again. _Don't put your arms around his neck. Don't put your arms around his neck._ Felicity instinctively put her arms around his neck, ignoring the pleas of the little voice of reason completely. Oliver immediately fitted her body against his and it felt like to Felicity like she'd finally come home. The next thing she knew Oliver was straightening up and taking her with him. Her feet left the ground and now it felt like the only thing anchoring her to this world was Oliver. Nothing else felt like it existed. Felicity lost herself completely in his kiss, unable to stop herself from returning them with a growing ardor that she could feel Oliver responding to. The next thing Felicity knew was her back was against something hard. She didn't know if it was the door or the wall, with her feet still off the ground she had no sense of direction. Oliver was filling her whole world, there was nothing else. Finally Oliver broke the kiss and it was all Felicity could do not to moan her protest. His hot, uneven breath was on her cheek and Felicity forced her eyes open to look up at him groggily. Oliver didn't break eye contact with her as he slowly dropped her feet back to the ground, making sure her body dragged its way along his on the way down. Felicity wasn't even certain her legs were going to be able to hold her as her whole body went limp, arms now hanging by her side and relying on the hard surface against her back to keep her upright. Oliver placed his hands on either side of her head, palms flat against the wood behind her. His face so close to hers, Felicity could taste his next words.

"Tell me that's all in my head," he ordered her raggedly. "Tell me you don't feel a thing when we kiss."

Felicity couldn't breathe. Oliver had pulled his body back from hers so that they were no longer touching but she could feel the heat rolling off his body and enveloping her. Felicity opened her mouth to try and speak but not even a squeak came out.

Oliver's gaze trailed to her lips and he seemed momentarily mesmerized. "My invitation to let me celebrate your birthday with you stands," he said hoarsely. Oliver dragged his eyes back up to meet her overwhelmed gaze. "It's your decision. All you have to do is say yes and give me one chance to prove to you that I know my own mind and my own heart."

Felicity swallowed hard, forcing herself to find her voice. "And-and if I say no?"

"Then I'll never mention any of this again," said Oliver quietly. "The power is all yours, Felicity. I'm at your mercy."

Felicity felt like the complete opposite was true.

"You give me your answer when you're ready." Oliver straightened up and despite the calmness of his voice, he was decidedly flushed. "I'll be waiting." And with that Oliver turned around and left Felicity standing there, still trying to remember how to breath and in a world of confusion.

**A/N****: Well, there you have it. What do you think of Oliver's plan? Nothing could possibly go wrong, right? Smooth sailing from here, no doubt about it. Yeppers, nothing to worry about now, that's for sure. See, don't you all feel better now?:D **


	42. Chapter 42

**A/N****: Amazingly, for the first time in my history of predicting how long a fic is going to be, I do think I've gotten it right when I said no more than 50 chapters. I think I'm going to nail it at 50. Wow, first time for everything, I guess. The thing is, where I end it, won't be the end of the story… even though it's the end of this story… but not the overall s/l arc I have planned for these two. Does that make sense? Just nod politely if it doesn't, I'll understand.**

**And that brings us to this chapter. After all the emotion of the last couple of chapters, this is just kind of a grounding one before we launch off into more high drama. That's what this chapter is. **

**Sorry, a bit distracted writing this because I'm currently obsessively thinking about the creamy, bacony potato bake I'm planning on making for my dinner tonight. It's all I can think about. Carbohydrates are my secret shame… she said, sharing said secret with hundreds of people all over the world. Oh well, they say confession is good for the soul, I suppose. **

**Currently my stomach is winning out over my soul though in the care factor thing. My stomach is a complete whore when it comes to potatoes… which, when you think about it, is one weird sentence to write… and read, I'm assuming… but still the truth. And bacon… sigh, is there nothing you can't do? Well, I mean, bacon can't perform brain surgery or matriculate at the local university or belch the alphabet but really, only one of those things is a necessary life skill anyways. I don't think I need to say which one it is. ;) **

**And don't get me started about cheese. I love cheese… as I've gotten older, cheese no longer loves me like I love it but I can't let go. I still drive past cheese's house most nights, just to see if cheese is home. I'm not ashamed to say I've drunk dialed cheese more than once, babbling my undying devotion to it. I still occasionally sleep under cheeses' bed. Cheese doesn't know that… you probably shouldn't tell him… there is an outside chance cheese might think that's weird… even though you and I both know it's a completely normal way to express your love and devotion to someone you really care about. That and making a scrap book out of the hair you cut off their head while they're sleeping. Soooo completely normal. **

**Anyways, I'm off to have my wicked way with potatoes, bacon and cheese. I may be some time… in fact, if you don't see me for a while, just know I died doing something I love… there is no tragedy in that… ;) **

**CHAPTER FORTY TWO**

Oliver looked up as Felicity walked into his office. She handed him a folder. "Here's the file you wanted, Mr. Queen," she said primly.

He smiled. "Thank you, Ms. Smoak."

"I've sent your meeting schedule for the rest of the week directly to your phone."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." Felicity abruptly turned back around and headed out, saving a brief smile for the other person in the room. "Hi Digg."

Diggle inclined his head. "Felicity." He waited until she was gone and seated back at her desk before turning his attention back to Oliver. "What was that?"

"What was that?" asked Oliver, pretending to be engrossed in reading the file Felicity had just given him.

"The scene from Downton Abbey you two just reenacted," said Diggle wryly.

"I don't watch the show so I don't know if that was funny or not."

"It was mildly amusing but not my point. What gives with you two?" Diggle suddenly frowned. "What have you done?"

Oliver sent him a quick look. "Nothing. Why would you think that?" He grimaced. That damn tell of his with the question. Why couldn't he get out of the habit of that?

Diggle leant back in the chair he was sitting in and folded his arms in front of his chest and just stared at Oliver.

"I asked Felicity out on a date," said Oliver in exasperation. "It's no big deal."

"When?"

"Whenever she wants to. I left it up to her." Even now Oliver couldn't believe he'd managed to do that and walk away from Felicity last night. He'd sat in his car for a good half an hour in front of Felicity's house, hoping against hope she'd just run out the door after him and say she believed him about everything and wanted their date to start right there and then. It hadn't happened and now Oliver was forced to wait on Felicity's decision. He was only a few hours in and already he could feel his anxiety levels rising. What if she took days to make a decision? Oliver didn't like to think about what state he was going to be in if that was the case.

"No, I mean when did you ask her? She's only been back five minutes."

"This morning."

"When this morning? You two have barely said two words to each other."

"Earlier this morning." Oliver bent his head down, really intent on looking like he was engrossed in his paperwork now.

"I picked you up for work this morning," said Diggle in consternation. "That was at seven. How much earlier are we talking about here?"

"I don't know," mumbled Oliver, head still down. "Threeish maybe."

"Threeish?" repeated Diggle. "Did you say threeish?"

Oliver picked up a pen and started to scribble nonsensical notes in the margin of his paperwork, just to have something to do and to try and ignore Diggle's persistent questions.

"Are we talking three in the morning here?" asked Diggle in disbelief. "Oliver."

Oliver made an exasperated noise at Diggle's persistence. "Yes, okay, it was three o'clock this morning that I asked her out."

Diggle blinked. "Why?"

"Because we'd left things hanging between us at the restaurant the night before and I couldn't leave things like that," said Oliver in frustration.

"Wait, you were at a restaurant together? So, you've already had a date?"

Oliver grimaced. "Not exactly."

"What does that mean?"

"It means Felicity was having a meal with this guy—"

"Felicity was on a date?"

"No, it wasn't a date," said Oliver irritably. "She was just eating dinner with this loser called Tab who she met on the plane coming home."

Diggle arched an eyebrow. "And did this loser ask Felicity to eat a meal with him?"

"Yes," said Oliver tightly.

"And did they both get dressed up?"

Oliver avoided eye contact. "Maybe."

"Then it was a date, Oliver."

"Okay, fine, it was a date," snapped Oliver. "But Felicity didn't look like she was having that much fun." Not strictly true because she'd been holding the guy's hand and smiling at him. Oliver's hand tightened on the pen he was holding. Todd was so lucky that Oliver hadn't punched him out then and there but he was trying to show Felicity that he wasn't this jealous lunatic anymore. Trouble was, when it came to her, he kind of was and Oliver suspected he always would be.

"Am I understanding this correctly?" asked Diggle in disbelief. "You gatecrashed Felicity's date with another man?"

Oliver scowled at him. "You're making it sound worse than it is," he complained.

"I don't think that's possible, Oliver." Diggle shook his head at him. "What were you thinking?"

"That Felicity needed to know how I felt about her before doing something stupid," said Oliver tightly.

"And you did that, in the middle of her date?"

Oliver paused. "Maybe, a little bit."

"Either you did or you didn't."

"Okay, I may have intimated that I'd like to pursue a relationship with her during her date with Thad."

Diggle cocked his head. "And how did you do that exactly?"

"I told her that I wanted to pursue a relationship with her."

"So, not so much intimated as flat out said what was on your mind?"

Oliver moved a little uncomfortably in his chair. "I guess you could interpret it that way." He held up an accusatory finger. "And don't say I did all of that because of some kind of aftereffect from the XR-320. There was no brain damage, it was all me," said Oliver defensively.

"I like how you say that like it's a good thing," said Diggle in exasperation. "So what, all that advice I gave you about going slow with Felicity… what was that? Just white noise to you?"

"I tried taking it slow. Turns out it wasn't for me."

"That was kind of my point, going slow was for Felicity's benefit." Diggle made an exasperated noise. "What happened to the guy who refused to fly to Vegas because he didn't want to crowd Felicity after what had happened at the cabin?"

"All that was before I knew she was in love with me," said Oliver unapologetically, "but now that I know that, there is no point."

"And how do you know Felicity is in love with you?"

"Because she said she wasn't," said Oliver triumphantly. The memory still made his heart skip a beat.

"Remind me again how I should be thinking you're not brain damaged right now?" asked Diggle flatly.

"Felicity followed up her 'I don't love you' with a question." Oliver grinned. "It's our shared tell, remember? It's how you know we're lying." He shrugged. "Felicity asked a question, ipso facto, she was lying about not loving me. Which means she does love me and there is no reason why we can't take out relationship to the next level and start dating."

"And this is how Felicity feels?" asked Diggle skeptically.

"She will," said Oliver confidently, "once she's thought about it."

Diggle turned his head to look out through the glass wall to where Felicity was currently on the phone and typing away at her computer. "And that's what she'd doing now, thinking about it?"

"Yes."

Diggle turned his attention back to Oliver. "And what if she thinks about it and says no?"

"That won't happen," said Oliver quickly.

"You know what happened to the guy who counted his chickens before they hatched," cautioned Diggle.

"Felicity is in love with me and as soon as she accepts the fact I'm in love with her too, there is going to be no reason for us not to pursue a relationship," insisted Oliver.

"What about all the reasons you had before about not doing that exact thing?" countered Diggle. "Aren't they valid anymore?"

"Do I worry that Felicity could get hurt because of her involvement in my life? Absolutely." Oliver's jaw hardened. "I'll never stop worrying about that but the reality is that Felicity is already in danger and has been since we first met and—"

"And?"

Oliver looked away briefly. "And I've been so afraid for so long that if Felicity saw the real me, all the darkness I have inside of me, that she wouldn't want to stay." He swallowed. "That she'd leave me, alone in all those shadows and nightmares." Oliver's face clouded over at just the thought of losing his light in those dark places. He looked over at Diggle, tone becoming more determined. "But after everything that happened at the cabin and on that mountain, Felicity's seen it all. She's seen who I can become, what is inside of me and she still came back. She came back to me, John, even knowing all that I was capable of." That knowledge still overwhelmed Oliver and made him sweat a little. _Total acceptance._ It wasn't something Oliver quite knew how to deal with and fully take on board but he loved that it was Felicity giving that gift to him. "That's changed everything for me," said Oliver emotionally. "I feel liberated, reborn… like a whole new man."

"And what does Felicity make of this new man?"

Oliver grimaced. "She thinks I'm brain damaged and still suffering from side effects of the toxin."

"Can you blame her?"

Oliver sat up straighter in his chair. "Do you think that?" he challenged the other man. He scowled. "Because I'm not."

"See, here's my problem, Oliver. Being in love does cause a lot of mental impairment, so I don't know, it's hard to tell."

Oliver gave a frustrated grunt. "What I feel for Felicity is real and not going anywhere. I just need to be given a chance to prove that to her and when she says yes to the date, that is exactly what I'll do."

"So basically everything rides on her going on a date with you? You've put all your eggs in that particular basket?"

Oliver didn't like the tone of Diggle's question. "What is it about you and eggs all of a sudden?" he asked irritably.

"I'm just saying that I'm a little bit worried about what you might do if Felicity says no to your date idea."

"Why would she?"

"You know there is a fine line between confidence and cocky, right?"

"I'm not being cocky," said Oliver sharply. "I just know how we feel about each other and the natural conclusion to those feelings. Felicity and I love each other, this is going to work out."

"You mean like you and Laurel loved each other?" asked Diggle calmly.

Oliver stiffened. "No, not like that." He glared at the other man. "Why would you even bring that up?"

"I'm just saying that you of all people should know that sometimes love isn't enough and life can get in the way." Diggle's look became pointed. "I just want you to be realistic about your expectations from Felicity and not push too hard."

"I'm not pushing too hard," said Oliver tightly.

"You're pushing hard enough that the woman thinks you're still under the influence of a poisonous gas," said Diggle wryly. "Just how exactly do you plan to convince Felicity otherwise when you've done a complete 180 on your relationship over such a short period of time?" Diggle shifted in his chair. "I don't mean to rain on your love parade, Oliver but you're being uncharacteristically optimistic about how this is going to all work out and I just want you to be prepared in case it doesn't go exactly to plan."

"You wanted me to decide if I could be all in when it came to Felicity, well, I have," said Oliver stubbornly. "And this is me being all in."

"It's somewhat frightening. Maybe you should take a little bit out again."

"Can't," he said simply. "Not when it comes to Felicity. I have to give it everything I've got." Oliver looked at Diggle, willing him to understand. "I love her. I don't know any other way to be with her now."

Diggle sighed. "Well, I'm rooting for you, man, but just try and remember that Felicity is in this too and while I'm glad you've worked this all out for yourself, it's kinda obvious that Felicity isn't there yet. Just go gently, that's all I'm saying. Give her some space to come around."

"What do you think I'm doing?" Oliver's eyes drifted over to where Felicity was now working away on the computer. "The ball is in her court. She just has to say yes to my invitation when she's ready."

"And you'll wait until she is?"

"Of course."

"Why do I feel like the words 'easier said than done' could be applied to this situation?"

Oliver shook his head at him. "You're making this more complicated than it is, Digg."

"Maybe you're just making it less complicated than it is?" said Diggle wryly.

"Is this you rooting for me?" asked Oliver flatly. "Because I'm not feeling the love right now."

"I'm trying to keep it real," countered Diggle. "I just don't think Felicity is as ready to board the Love Boat as you are just yet. I want you to be prepared for that is all I'm saying."

"Felicity's ready," said Oliver calmly. "You'll see. She just needs to think about it for a little while and she'll realize that us together makes perfect sense."

"Okay, if you say so."

"I do," said Oliver without hesitation.

Four days later and Felicity still hadn't given him an answer to his request for a date and Oliver's confidence was beginning to waver. Just what was taking her so long anyways? It was as a simple yes or no question – go on a date with me. Why was Felicity finding it so hard to just say yes? She'd been painfully polite to him ever since that night and Oliver was ready to scream. It was like Felicity was on her best behavior around him and Oliver was finding it maddening. He didn't want careful, controlled Felicity. He wanted quirky, run at the mouth, random Felicity. Oliver was doing everything he could to show Felicity that he was his normal self when it came to his behavior around her but she wasn't making it easy. Why had he made that stupid promise to her that he wasn't going to do or say anything about the date until she did? Because you thought Felicity would have the same trouble staying away from you as you do from her, that's why, you moron.

Apparently that wasn't as big an issue for her because Felicity seemed to be doing fine while Oliver could feel his patience and sanity disintegrating with each passing day. At least he had an outlet for all of this frustration. Oliver was looking forward to a night on the street, scaring the hell out of the bad guys and feeling like he was making a difference. It made him feel like he still had a modicum of control left in his life. There was a new band of heavies in town looking to set up a money laundering racket and Team Arrow was looking at taking them down. The other upside to setting up an operation like the one they had planned tonight was that it took time to get organized and acquire all the intel they needed. That meant Felicity was spending all her nights at the Foundry, doing just that and there was no time for her to contemplate plans with any other man. Oliver may not have locked down that date with Felicity yet, but there was some kind of satisfaction in knowing that he was the only man in her life that she was giving any kind of romantic thought to. It wasn't much but Oliver needed something to hang onto right then. He walked down the stairs into the lair, surprised to see he was the first one there. Diggle, Felicity and Roy were all meant to be doing a pre-mission brief before going out. Oliver glanced at his watched and realized he was running a lot earlier than he'd thought. That explained it.

"How does that feel?"

Oliver abruptly stopped at the foot of the stairs at the sound of Felicity's voice. He turned his head and looked over to the backroom where the question had come from.

"Feels good."

Oliver tensed as he heard Roy's voice. What were he and Felicity doing in the backroom together… and what felt so good?

Roy was talking again. "Your hands are really warm."

"You know what they say, warm hands, cold heart. No wait, that isn't right."

Oliver heard Roy chuckle and then Felicity spoke again.

"You're a lot better at this than Oliver."

Oliver scowled fiercely. _What the hell were the two of them doing back there?_ His jaw hardened as he stalked over to get a better look. He was at the door which was open a little and he could see through the crack and what he saw was the top half of Roy and he happened to be shirtless. Roy was leaning back against a bench top and Oliver couldn't see his lower half. He craned his neck and just caught a glimpse of the top of Felicity's head moving around his waist area, like she was crouched in front of him.

"Well, I'm a lot younger than Oliver, so you know, I can do this for longer."

"Lucky for me."

Oliver took an involuntary step back, physically reeling from what he knew he couldn't be seeing but he was seeing and hearing it nonetheless. Because of his distraction, Oliver didn't take proper care and he ended up bumping into one of his hand weights which was on the floor near the work out area. It rolled and banged against the wall.

"Did you hear that?" Felicity's tone was concerned. "I think someone is here, quickly."

There was the sound of scrambling and clothes rustling and Oliver immediately retreated back to behind a column so that he couldn't be seen. Roy and Felicity hastily appeared through the doorway, Roy still doing up his pants and tucking in his shirt. Oliver's eyes narrowed menacingly at the guilty tableau they made. _This was not happening_. There was a part of him trying to tell him that there had to be a simple explanation for what he was seeing but the jealous rage sweeping through his entire body pretty much drowned that out.

"Remember, just keep this between us," fretted Felicity, looking around and up the stairs. "I don't want Oliver to know what we're doing, at least not yet."

Any hope Oliver had of trying to maintain some kind of rational perspective on this was gone with those words from Felicity. Whatever was happening she was keeping secrets from him, with Roy, of all people. The vein in his temple burst into life, throbbing almost away almost violently. Oliver couldn't handle Felicity keeping secrets from him, it was his Achilles heel when it came to her. That was unfair of him, he knew, considering all the secrets he'd kept from her over the years but he couldn't help it. Felicity keeping secrets from him drove him literally insane and caused all of his thought processes to shut down.

"Felicity, I think you should just tell the guy. I don't think it's going to be that big a deal to him," said Roy in exasperation.

"If you don't feel comfortable doing this we can stop," said Felicity quickly.

"I don't want to stop. That's not it."

Oliver's hands curled into fists. That was it, Roy Harper was a dead man. Oliver had no idea what was happening and how this abomination could have started but he sure as hell knew how it was going to end.

Roy was still talking. "It's just that it's all going to come out eventually and I'm not even sure why we're sneaking around anyways."

Felicity grimaced. "Just humor me, okay? Oliver is kind of-of—"

Oliver scowled, not knowing what Felicity was going to say next but pretty certain he wasn't going to like it.

"Delicate right now," finished off Felicity unevenly. "I just need some time to approach the subject with him."

Oliver was right, he didn't like it. _Delicate, what the hell?_

Roy shrugged. "Okay. If it'll make you feel better, I guess I'm okay with it. Oliver won't hear about what we're doing at night after he and Diggle leave from me."

Oliver closed his eyes and willed himself to remain calm. He couldn't kill Roy on the spot, he had to make him suffer and know why it was Oliver was beating him to a bloody pulp. An eerie stillness settled on Oliver as he had to wonder if this was the reason Felicity was taking so long to give him an answer about their date. Somehow Roy had managed to swoop in and take advantage of Felicity's vulnerable emotional state and Oliver wasn't about to stand for that. If Roy thought he could toy with the affections of the two most important women in Oliver's life, then the idiot had another thing coming.

"Hey, Digg," said Felicity brightly as the other man appeared at the top of the stairs. "Is Oliver with you?"

"I'm here," said Oliver, stepping out from behind the column and smiling pleasantly at them all.

Felicity frowned. "Have you been there long?" she asked nervously.

Oliver kept the easy smile on his face. "No, just came in the side entrance now. Why?"

"No reason," she said hastily. "Okay, I guess we'd better start getting ourselves organized."

Oliver just stood back and let Felicity bring up all the information she'd collected on the gang they were going after that night. Outwardly he looked calm but internally he was anything but. Oliver just needed to punch someone very hard. His gaze drifted over to Roy who was listening intently to Felicity right then knowing exactly who had inadvertently put their hand up to help him out with that.

**A/N****: Alright, alright, before anyone loses their mind about this Roy/Felicity thing, I promise you – it'll be funny. Not someone choking on their milk and snorting it out of their nose all over a nun kinda funny but still, it won't be painful, I promise… unless you're Roy… and then you're screwed. I just thought Oliver was getting way too cocky in the beginning of the chapter and needed to be taken down a peg or two. I can't help it, I just love to torture the boy. I can't help it if some of my little ducklings get caught in some friendly fire when I do. Thems the dangers of reading an Aunty Lou story… that and giant squirrels… always got to be on the lookout for giant squirrels. **

**Now, back to my special alone time with cheese… who seems to be coming around from that last dose of Rohypnol, so I'd better do something about that tout suite… can't have him escaping and running naked down the street in handcuffs, now can I… you know, again. **


	43. Chapter 43

**A/N****: Hi guys, not much of an a/n today because I stabbed my hand with a knife yesterday (accidentally, it wasn't a cry for help or anything lol) and my hand is all swollen and very painful so typing is painful and I'm saving my hand to reply to my lovely reviewers. **

**So, here's the chapter, have fun. :D **

**CHAPTER FORTY THREE**

Roy chewed on his sandwich and swallowed before taking another bite. He suddenly became aware of someone staring at him. Turning his head Roy saw Oliver fixing him with an unblinking stare. He nodded at the older man. "Hey." They were suited up and about ready to go out. Diggle and Felicity were doing some last minute preps.

"Hey," responded Oliver coolly.

When Oliver didn't add anything after that, just continued staring at him, Roy started to feel a little uncomfortable. "How you going?"

"I'm great," said Oliver, an odd coldness to his eyes. "You?"

"Good," agreed Roy, not sure why their conversation felt quite so stilted.

"Hungry, huh?"

Roy looked down at the sandwich in his hand. "Yeah."

"Worked up an appetite?"

"Ah… yeah, I guess," said Roy hesitantly, not sure why Oliver had said that in that tone of voice. "I haven't had dinner yet."

"Guess you got caught up doing more important things, hmm?"

Roy blinked. Oliver was asking questions as though he already seemed to know the answer to them. "You could say that."

Oliver cocked his head, his expression oddly hard. "How's Thea?"

"Ah… you mean Thea, your sister, the one that you live with?" asked Roy in confusion.

"Yes, Thea, your girlfriend, my sister, the woman who loves you," said Oliver tightly.

"She's… umm… she's fine," said Roy uncertainly. "Why? Has she said something to you?"

"What would Thea be saying to me?" asked Oliver intently. "Sounds like you've got a guilty conscience there to me, Roy." His eyes narrowed. "What's with that?"

"No, Thea and I are great," said Roy swiftly. "What would I have to feel guilty about?"

"You tell me."

"Tell you what?" asked Roy in consternation. Oliver was really starting to freak him out. Had Thea said something to the guy? Was he in trouble again? Roy had no idea seeing as he still hadn't worked out what he'd done the first time Thea had called the break. He could have easily done it again… or not done… whatever it was that had pissed her off the first time.

"Okay, we're all ready," said Felicity as she turned around. "One last coms check and we're all good to go."

Roy went back to finishing off his sandwich, acutely aware Oliver's eyes were still boring into him but trying to ignore it.

Felicity tapped her console. "Digg, all good?"

Diggle touched his chest where the receiver for his coms link was located. "Loud and clear."

Felicity nodded in approval as his response came through her end. "Oliver, all ready?"

Oliver finally took his eyes off of Roy and touched his chest. "Oh, I'm ready," he said coolly.

Felicity gave a little frown at his tone but then moved onto Roy. "Roy, you getting me?"

Roy touched his chest now. "Got you."

Felicity frowned and tapped her ear. "Again."

"Ah, testing, 1, 2, 3," repeated Roy.

Felicity shook her head. "It's breaking up. Here, let me see." She walked up to Roy and pulled on the zipper of his red leathers, exposing his chest. Felicity began to fiddle with the coms wire running from his ear down to the receiver on his chest.

Roy once again became conscious of a set of eyes drilling their way into his back. He turned his head to see Oliver looking him the darkest of looks. Roy's gaze immediately skittered away. What was up with him tonight?

"Try again," Felicity instructed him, still standing close.

"Testing, 1, 2, 3."

"Better but not quite right," muttered Felicity. "You've got all the wires twisted up. They're not lying flat. Take off your shirt. Let's start again."

Suddenly Oliver was there, moving Felicity away from Roy. "Okay, he's a grown man, he doesn't need you to dress him, Felicity." Oliver gave Roy a sharp look. "Do you?"

"No, I got it," said Roy, eyeing Oliver warily as he reached into his jacket and straightened the wires himself. "Check, 1, 2, 3."

Felicity nodded approvingly. "Perfect."

"Alright," said Diggle, "now that we've got that sorted, let's get this show on the road. We're burning moonlight here."

"Everyone stay in coms contact," Felicity instructed them. "I want to know what is going on."

Diggle smiled. "Don't worry, we know the drill."

"Just everyone be safe and watch each other's back," said Felicity firmly. "I want you all back in one piece."

"Some of us more than others," muttered Oliver under his breath.

"What?" asked Felicity.

He just smiled sweetly. "I'm thinking of buying a family of otters."

Felicity pulled a face but kept on going. "If anything goes off plan, pull back and we'll rendezvous back here, okay?"

Roy grimaced. "Okay, so, we're all just going to breeze past the otter thing, is that right?" He looked around at the others who just stared back at him. "Alright, breezing past it is because that wasn't concerning at all coming from the guy who recently went insane and tried to kill us all."

Oliver's smile suddenly seemed overtly menacing as he turned it on Roy. "Don't you worry, Roy, if I try and kill you again, I can promise you I'll be completely in my right mind."

Roy's eyes widened a little. "Well… that's comforting," he said slowly, suddenly feeling like he shouldn't be making any sudden moves. "I guess." Truth be told, Roy didn't know what the hell that was.

Diggle slung a large black bag over his shoulder. "Alright, let's roll out."

He and Oliver headed out towards the side entrance but Roy hung back.

Roy grabbed Felicity's arm. "Okay, tell me you've noticed something is up with Oliver tonight."

"He's just been a little tense these last couple of days," said Felicity uncomfortably. "Besides, Oliver always gets a little antsy before going out on the street. That's all it is."

"He keeps staring at me," said Roy in agitation. "It's freaking me out."

"Have you and Thea had a fight?"

"No, not that I'm aware of."

"How can you not know if you've had a fight with someone?" asked Felicity in consternation.

"I don't know if you realize this but the Queen's are one very passive aggressive family," said Roy wryly. "I haven't quite worked out all the rules yet. In my family you did something wrong, you got punched in the face." He shrugged. "It was a pretty brutal system but you always knew where you were with it. The Queen's, not so much."

"You think Thea has a problem with you and told Oliver and now he has a problem with you?" asked Felicity slowly.

"It's possible." Roy pulled a face. "He just seems mad at me."

"Oliver is still dealing with the aftereffects of being poisoned," said Felicity unhappily. "Just try and be patient with him, okay? What he's going through isn't his fault. He doesn't know what he's feeling from one day to the next." Her expression became wistful. "We all just have to be patient with him," she said quietly.

"Are you coming or what?"

The loud demand made them both jump as Oliver was suddenly back in the room and glaring death at Roy.

Felicity shook her head and rubbed her ear with the coms earpiece in it. "Oliver, you don't have to come into a room and shout into the coms at the same time," she said unevenly. "It's one or the other. That's the point of this technology."

"Sorry to break up the little moment you two were having," he bit out, "but I thought we were going to make a difference to this city tonight, not holding a CWA meeting."

"What's a CWA?" asked Roy in confusion.

"We got it, you're young," snapped Oliver in obvious ire. "You don't have to go on about it." His glare deepened. "Are you coming or what?"

Roy rolled his eyes at Felicity. "Coming," he muttered.

Felicity mouthed the word 'patience' at him and gave him a sympathetic look. Roy had a feeling he was going to need a lot more than sympathy to get through tonight.

#

Oliver crouched down on the rooftop, completely still as he watched the three guards walking up and down in front of the abandoned mannequin factory. The new bad guys in town were using it as their base to receive illegally gotten money and launder it for their clients. His gaze strayed over to where Roy was also crouched on an adjacent rooftop, watching the back entrance. Oliver's jaw hardened. He was still reeling from what he'd overheard back at the Foundry. He didn't know what was going on with Roy and Felicity but it was enough to know there was something. This whole patience thing was a crock. He'd given Felicity space so that she could realize that he wasn't under the influence of any toxin when he said he loved her. That space wasn't meant to be filled with another man. It was meant to give her time to clear her head. Oliver's hand reflexively tightened on his bow at even the thought of Roy touching her. Just how confused could Felicity be to let Roy anywhere near her? It made no sense but then this was Felicity and Oliver was having a tough time keeping his bearings around her these days. He hadn't expected her to go on that date with Ted and that had happened. She'd called him unpredictable lately but these days Oliver had no idea which way was up with Felicity. He just felt like he was free falling, making him lurch between exhilaration and nausea practically nonstop.

The object of his distraction was suddenly in his ear. "Heads up, Digg, the van will pop out in front of you in three, two, one…"

"Target acquired," said Diggle who was now tailing the van which was heading towards the factory.

"The traffic cameras put four people in the car," said Felicity. "All Triad members."

"Looks like your intel was right about them planning on doing a little business with these guys tonight," said Roy.

"Looks like."

Oliver put a hand to his chest. "Diggle, block them in as soon as they get into the alleyway. There is only one way in or out for a car. As soon as we announce our presence, they're all going to scatter in different directions on foot—"

"Like cockroaches," said Roy in disgust.

"Contain them," said Oliver as though Roy hadn't spoken. "I want this outfit shut down tonight. No one left to carry on the business."

"The van will be there in less than a minute," said Felicity. "I'll lose visual on them once they turn off to where you are so keep me in the loop, guys."

"No problem," said Roy easily. "We'll paint you a picture. It'll be like you're here but with a lot less chance of getting punched in the face."

Oliver looked over towards Roy again, eyes narrowing and wondered if the young man had a premonition of how this night was going to turn out for him.

#

Felicity walked up and down, listening to the chatter between the three men in the middle of taking down the two groups of bad guys.

"Roy," said Diggle urgently. "You've got about seven heading your way. They'll bottle neck through the door, use that to your advantage."

"On it."

Felicity frowned as she listened into the sounds of gun shots and yelling. It sounded like mayhem out there but she reassured herself that the three men knew what they were doing and could handle this. At least it was taking her mind off the whole date thing with Oliver. Even as Felicity thought that she realized she was back to thinking about it. Ever since Oliver had turned up at her doorstep in the wee hours of the morning and asked her out, Felicity had been struggling to think about anything else. She was at war with her heart and her head and she didn't know which one she should even be rooting for. Could Oliver really feel and act the way he was doing simply on his own? How could there not be some kind of inducement affecting his actions? But, if this was all an obsession for him, how was it that he'd been able to be true to his word and not push her for an answer to the whole date thing? Felicity knew for a fact drug-addled Oliver couldn't have done that. Which brought a whole new set of worries to Felicity's door now.

What if Oliver was in his right mind, they went on a date and she bored him stupid? Here he was, the billionaire playboy who was shipwrecked on an island for five years. There was practically no limit to the amount of stories and experiences he had to make himself interesting and that was before you even got past all the staring at his gorgeousness. What did she have to go up against that? Dazzle Oliver with the story of how one time in college when she'd gotten drunk on what was meant to be a non-alcoholic punch and thrown up all over the Captain of the varsity tennis team? And it wasn't like she could add to her repertoire of interesting stories with her current life because she was with Oliver practically non-stop. They worked together, they crusaded together and the rest of the time was pretty much eating or sleeping. Felicity didn't know if she could make the story of not having the right change for the pizza boy last Tuesday night into anything which could remotely hold Oliver's attention. Her life was boring… except for the bits with Oliver in it but he already knew about those bits.

Felicity was torn.

It was one thing to have Oliver pursue her under the influence of a toxin and then get over it but to pursue her of his own free will with a clear head and then find out how utterly boring she was… well, Felicity didn't know if the was emotionally equipped to handle that. So, unbelievably, she had yet another scenario to worry about when it came to the concept of going on a date with Oliver. Just when she thought it wasn't possible to find something else to obsess over about the guy, she proved herself wrong. Felicity was just a bundle of what if's and maybe's and it kept sending her around and around in circles until she was literally dizzy. And the whole time she'd catch Oliver looking at her and knew he was waiting for an answer to his question but Felicity was too frightened to open her mouth and let all the crazy which was currently building up in her head fall out. So, she was attempting something she'd never really mastered before – keeping quiet. The trouble was, the longer she kept quiet, the more she could feel the tension building between her and Oliver and she just knew something was going to give at some point and Felicity had no idea what that was going to look like. Although her best guess was that it'd be nothing pretty.

"Felicity!"

She started at the loud rendering of her name. "Sorry, what?"

"Are we boring you?" asked Oliver tightly.

"No, no, sorry, what do you need?" Damn, she needed to get her head back in the game.

"Can you keep a track of anyone leaving the area, let us know if anyone is getting through the net?"

Felicity quickly sat down at her computer desk again. "Yes, on it." She looked at the multiple screens in front of her, watching the feeds from the traffic cameras.

"Need a little help here, guys," grunted Roy, sounding like he was getting out of breath. "I don't know where all these bad guys are coming from."

"I'm pinned down on the other side," said Diggle. "Oliver."

"I see you, Roy," said Oliver calmly.

There was the sound of scuffling. "Ah… could you see me a little closer up?" panted Roy. "I-argghh!"

"Roy!" said Felicity in concern. "Roy, are you alright? What's happening?"

"He just got punched in the face," said Oliver coolly. "No big deal."

"That's easy for the guy without the bloody nose to say," snapped Roy in annoyance. "You coming to help out or what?" There were more sounds of punches being thrown and general fight noises.

"I'm on my way," said Oliver, not sounding particularly rushed.

"Hey!" yelled Roy suddenly. "Watch it! You almost shot me in the head, man!"

"What's going on out there?" asked Felicity in concern. "Oliver, what's happening?"

"Otter man just tried to put an arrow between my eyes!" yelled Roy, obviously still trying to fend off attackers.

"You moved," said Oliver dismissively, sounding like he had his hands full as well with the bad guys.

"Of course I moved, I'm in the middle of a fight!"

"Then how is that my problem?"

"Oliver, don't shoot at Roy if you think you're going to miss," said Felicity in horror.

"What's with all this concern about Roy all of a sudden?" bit out Oliver. "You got something you want to tell me, Felicity?"

"Yes, don't shoot Roy!" she exclaimed. "What is wrong with you?"

"Nothing," snapped Oliver, still obviously continuing to fight. "Just trying to work out how Roy got to the top of your priority list all of a sudden."

Felicity held up her hands in an expression of confusion, even though she knew Oliver couldn't see her. "What are you talking about?"

"Could still do with a little help here," grunted Roy.

"You think I should help the guy who is cheating on my sister?" bit out Oliver angrily.

"What?" squawked Roy.

"Your little secret is out, Harper," said Oliver angrily.

"Is this about me and Bunny because whatever that guy told you, there is absolutely nothing going on there," said Roy heatedly.

"Not Bunny," said Oliver in agitation. "Felicity."

"I don't even know Bunny," protested Felicity in confusion. "What are you talking about, Oliver?"

"Everyone remembers we're in the middle of a fight, right?" asked Diggle in exasperation, sounding like he had his hands full with his own problems.

"Not you and Bunny. I'm talking about you and Roy," growled Oliver, as though Diggle hadn't even spoken. "And your little secret rendezvouses."

"What?" said Felicity unevenly.

"You know, your private meetings which seem to be pants optional?" said Oliver bitterly.

"I knew we should have told him," said Roy in agitation.

"Are you kidding me with this?" asked Felicity in disbelief.

"Do you hear me laughing?"

"I feel a little hysterical laughter coming on, if anyone's interested," said Diggle dryly.

"Me and Roy, are you insane?" gasped Felicity in outraged.

"Okay, you could sound a little less disgusted by that thought," said Roy, sounding miffed. "I'm not completely repellent."

"You're Thea's boyfriend," said Felicity hotly. "As though I'd ever do that to Thea or any other woman for that matter!"

"I'm not saying you would, I'm just saying don't make me sound like sex with me would be the equivalent of a root canal," protested Roy in annoyance.

"Then what have you two been up to every night this week?" asked Oliver angrily. "Care to share with the rest of the class because we're all dying to know."

"I'm not," said Diggle flatly. "Can't we just take down the bad guys without turning this into an episode of The Bold and The Brainless?"

"Roy has been helping me out with repairs to the suit," snapped Felicity.

"_My_ suit?" asked Oliver in outrage. "Why wouldn't you get me to help you with that?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because I was a little worried that you hadn't completely recovered from your ordeal and were still a little twitchy and didn't want to bother you with stuff you didn't need to worry about but hey, glad to see that my concerns for your mental wellbeing were completely unfounded and you're totally AOK!" Felicity had to drag in a breath after that vehement run on sentence.

"So what, you were totally going to let these guys hand me my ass because you think I was trying to snake your wannabe girl friend?" asked Roy in disbelief. He gave a grunt and there was the sound of someone hitting the ground and now Roy was running. "What the hell, man?"

"You two were acting really suspiciously," said Oliver defensively. The sound of a series of arrows being let off. "What was I meant to think?"

"That I wouldn't cheat on Thea?" snapped Roy. "How about we start there? I mean, Felicity is cute and all and she's got an awesome butt, I mean, really top quality—"

"Roy," said Diggle warningly.

"And have I pictured her naked on occasion, sure—"

"Oh God," said Diggle in resignation.

"You've done what?" growled Oliver in outrage.

"What?" squeaked Felicity.

"I'm twenty-one year old guy," said Roy unrepentantly. "I picture every woman I meet naked at some point and any man who says he doesn't is a damn liar."

"You know," said Diggle, almost sounding nostalgic, "I used to work with real professionals, men and women who left their private lives at the door when they had a mission to complete."

"Nobody cares, Diggle!" snapped Oliver.

"Kinda my point—" There was the sound of Diggle fending off several people at once. "Somebody should!" Running feet. "Oliver! The van, it's getting away." The noise of metal on metal could be heard and then there was the screeching of tires. "They've rammed my car and pushed it out of the way. Damn it, that's three cars in a month I've lost!"

"I'm on it." Oliver was running.

"I can't believe you think Roy and I were sneaking around behind Thea's back," said Felicity, still reeling from Oliver's accusations. "You're a complete ass face, Oliver Queen!"

"He's got bigger problems right now, Felicity," said Diggle hastily. "Oliver's on top of the van and they're looking to shake him loose."

Felicity looked at her monitor as the Triads van popped up on one of the screens, speeding down the road with Oliver clinging to the roof. Her stomach tightened. "I've got him." The words were no sooner out of her mouth when the screens abruptly went dark and she lost the feed. "No, no, no no!" said Felicity in despair, quickly trying to reestablish the link.

"What's wrong?" asked Diggle quickly.

"I've lost the feed, I can't see them anymore." Felicity's hands flew over the keyboards, trying to find another access point to regain entrance to the feed. "Oliver, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," said Oliver, his voice distorted by the sound of air rushing by him as he clung to the top of the speeding van. "I need—"

A burst of incredibly loud gunfire exploded into Felicity's ear, cutting off Oliver's next words off and sending Felicity's heart into her mouth…

**A/N****: Oh yeah, just a heads up, there is a little cliffhanger… probably should have mentioned that earlier. :) **


	44. Chapter 44

**A/N****: Hi guys, thank you for the concern over my hand. It's much better today and I can bend it, which is good. Back to my 'no pointy things in the house' rule, it'll be sporks all round from now on. **

**Before I get started and on a side note for those finding the angst of the show (or even this fic I guess, although I think I'm being kinder than the show ATM lol) a little hard to bear, you should absolutely check out this video I found. If you go to YouTube and put in 'Olicity How I met your mother' an amazing vid by andrajacsi will come up which is guaranteed to blow your mind. I think it expresses the hopes most of us have for Olicity long term and does stuff in there… well, I won't spoil it. Just watch it and try and figure out how they did it. I have no idea but its way cool. **

**Now, it seems I gave some of you a chuckle with the last chapter. Yay! I do kind of like that border line slap stick stuff. I blame it on growing up watching 'The Goodies' and a lot of British TV shows like "Some Mothers Do Ave 'Em" and "Are you Being Served". I've always been drawn to the ridiculous because life can be very ridiculous and odd if you think about it. When it's happening to you it makes sense but from the outside looking in, yeah, there is an absurdity there I can't help but trying to accent in my stories, particularly love stories. But that being said, I'm also a fiend for my dialog (as well you all know by this stage) and for those getting a little frustrated with Olicity's lack of real conversation, well, after this chapter, talking is pretty much all they do… they talk A LOT, so I think you'll get your quota before the story is done. ;) **

**A shout out to my guest reviewers again, like Namora and many others. I'll thank you here for your support because I can't reply to you via PM. Sorry to the sexually frustrated one… you may need to brace yourself for a little longer when it comes to this fic for relieving some tension… sorry about that, but we will be entering some 'playful' territory, so hope that will be enough. ;) **

**My stalking, sorry, completely natural attentiveness to cheese has taken an ugly turn. Cheese took a restraining order out on me… bastard. Why can't he just accept we're meant to be together forever? I mean, really, what's so hard about that? Hank says I should just kill both of us and have ourselves stuffed and mounted over the mantle. I said it'd probably be more tasteful if we were just holding hands instead. Hank tends to have pretty extreme solutions to problems, like the time he thought cutting my head off would be a good way to solve my issue with some grey hairs creeping in. I mean, he's right, it would solve it but looking at the big picture, I'm now headless, which, over all, feels like a backwards step. **

**Anyways, enough of my domestic issues. You've come here to find out what happened to Oliver. Are Riggle going to be dragging Oliver's broken and bleeding body back to the lair so Felicity can tell him that she loves him just before he dies? Man, if I did that I'd probably have to go into Witness Protection at this point, even though I'm already anonymous. I feel like your hate would find me regardless. So, assuming that I'm not that cruel/evil/death wishy, I guess you'd better read on to find out what actually happens, eh? **

**Have fun… **

**CHAPTER FORTY FOUR**

Felicity winced in pain at the noise, putting a hand to her ear. "Oliver?" There was a deafening silence after the gunshots. She couldn't breathe. "Oliver!" she said loudly. "Oliver, come in, say something!" There was no response and Felicity could feel her anxiety levels skyrocketing. "John, Roy, tell me one of you has eyes on Oliver?" she said anxiously.

"No, I tried to follow on my bike but I wasn't fast enough, I lost the van," said Roy in frustration. "I can't see him."

"Diggle?"

"No, me neither," said Diggle tightly. "I'm still back at the warehouse. My car is totaled."

Felicity bit back a groan. "Oliver, please, come in. What's happened? Are you alright?" Of course he wasn't alright. If he was alright, he would be talking to her but he wasn't so that meant… Felicity couldn't even complete that thought without her stomach heaving. She frantically checked kept trying to get the traffic camera links back up but it was no use. Felicity swapped to monitoring the police radio band, trying to pick up if anyone was attending some kind of shoot out or traffic accident but she kept coming up with nothing.

"How are you going, Felicity?" asked Diggle. "Anything your end?"

"No," she groaned, "nothing. I don't know what's happened. Maybe they shot him off the roof of the van? Maybe Oliver is lying bleeding somewhere in a gutter?"

"Felicity, calm down, we'll find him."

Felicity forced herself to take a deep breath. The not knowing was killing her. Oliver couldn't be dead. Her last words to him couldn't be her calling him an ass face. Felicity put a hand to her mouth, filled with fear and regret. Why did she have to fly off the handle like that and distract Oliver in the middle of a deadly chase? Of course it was going to end in tragedy. What had she been thinking? Felicity fought back tears. "Just everyone keep looking for him, okay? Oliver's got to be out there somewhere."

"Don't worry, Felicity, we've got this," said Roy encouragingly but she could still hear the worry in the other man's voice.

The minutes ticked by with agonizing slowness. Felicity managed to reestablish the camera feed link but it was far too late now. The van was long gone. Listening in on the police communications was also turning out to be a dead end. "Guys," she said anxiously.

"We're looking, Felicity," said Diggle intently. "Stay tuned. We'll tell you as soon as we find something."

Diggle was worried, she could hear it in his voice. If Oliver was alright, he'd be talking to them but he wasn't. Felicity bit her bottom lip, feeling sick. More minutes dragged by and still nothing until Felicity felt like she was going to scream. Every muscle in her body was tense as she stared at the screens with a dedicated intensity, listening to every word which was going on over the police band and willing Oliver to be out there somewhere, safe and in one piece. A hand touched her shoulder.

"Felicity."

Felicity gave a scream of real fear and whirled around and sank her teeth into the nearest fleshy thing she saw, which happened to be a hand.

Oliver gave a strangled cry of pain and jerked his hand away, holding it to his chest. "You bit me!" he said in disbelief.

Felicity just stared at him, her heart racing ten to the dozen and trying to get her adrenalin-soaked brain to work again. "I bite when I'm startled," she reminded him faintly, still trying to get over the fright he'd just given her, starting with the sound of gunfire over his coms. Felicity gave a little gasp and launched herself up into Oliver's arms, clinging to him tightly to which he immediately wrapped his arms around her, returning the embrace. "You're not dead. I thought you were dead but you're not. I couldn't get you on your coms and I tried and tried but there was nothing and I thought you were dead…" Felicity's words tumbled out over the top of one another. "Oh God, I thought I'd lost you, Oliver."

"You didn't lose me," said Oliver huskily. "I'm right here and I'm perfectly alright." He tightened his hold on her and buried his face in her neck.

Suddenly Oliver's words sunk into her. He was perfectly fine. Felicity had nearly had a heart attack and died at least a thousand deaths and Oliver was perfectly fine. She abruptly pulled away from him, glaring up at his surprised expression. "You complete ass face!" Felicity yelled. "How could you do that to me? What was that? Punishing me for yelling at you even though you totally deserved it? Is that it? You don't answer my coms call like some kind of third grader having a temper tantrum?"

Oliver looked taken aback. "I had to get off the van when they started firing up at me through the roof. When I landed I took out my coms, that's why I didn't answer you," he said sharply. "I doubled back to get my bike but everyone else was gone."

"And you couldn't have called me to let me know, oh, I don't know, that you weren't bleeding out in a gutter somewhere?" she demanded angrily.

"I don't have a phone," said Oliver, his voice getting louder as well. "A dog ate it, remember?"

"A pay phone then," threw back Felicity, her emotions in a turmoil over how much he'd frightened her.

Oliver swept his hand over his leathers. "Does this outfit look like it's got a coin pocket?" he asked in disbelief.

"You could have rung reverse charges!" she yelled at him.

"Oh, okay, I didn't think of that," he admitted. "Yeah, I could have done that."

Felicity slapped him hard in the chest with both hands. "Ass face!"

Diggle's voice was in her ear. "I'm hearing a lot of ass facing. Am I to assume our supreme leader has returned intact?"

"Yes, he's back," snapped Felicity, glaring up at Oliver.

"I'll call off the search party then, shall I?"

"Yes, sorry, Digg," said Felicity distractedly.

"Tell him you bit me," said Oliver in annoyance, shaking his hand.

"I bite when I'm startled," ground out Felicity. "Everyone knows that."

"I knew that," agreed Diggle.

"I didn't," said Roy, "but I'll remember that. It's kind of something you don't forget."

"Oliver forgot and is now blaming me for a perfectly natural reflex," said Felicity, eyeing him defensively.

"You know I can't hear what they're saying, right?" said Oliver in exasperation. He tapped his ear piece. "Broken coms. And no one over the age of three can consider biting a natural reflex."

"We're heading back there now, Felicity."

"Okay." Felicity pulled her own earpiece out and threw it on the desk. "You are unbelievable, Oliver Queen."

"I could say the same about you, Felicity Smoak," he shot back in vexation. "One minute you're biting me, then you're hugging me and now you're yelling at me. You talk about my mental stability being questionable. You're like the weather in San Francisco on speed."

"How can you question my sanity—"

Oliver held up his hand where there was still the indents of her teeth and pointed an accusatory finger at the mark.

Felicity ignored him. "Do you know what it did to me watching you throw yourself off that cliff for me? How my heart was ripped out of my chest thinking you were dead?" she asked emotionally. "And then you turn around and do it all again and act like you don't know why that would bother me." Felicity felt the anger at his obtuseness rise in her again. She punched his arm again as hard as she could. "Ass face! OWW!" Felicity shook her hand which was painfully reminding her that Oliver was mostly muscle.

"You need to tuck your thumb in more when you throw a punch otherwise you'll end up breaking it, remember," said Oliver conversationally.

Felicity gave him a dark look as she cradled her hand. "Thanks, I'll try to remember that for the next time I'm overcome with the urge to punch you." She turned away from him. "Which will probably be sooner rather than later," Felicity muttered to herself. How dare Oliver be so calm and unruffled when Felicity had been torturing herself with thoughts of him being maimed or killed?

Oliver sighed and unslung his quiver, laying it on the nearby bench. "Felicity, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

Felicity turned back around, not ready to play nice just yet. He was messing with her emotions too much. "Did you mean to accuse me of being the big old slutty queen of Sluttsville, USA?" she asked acerbically.

Oliver pursed his lips. "I don't recall phrasing it quite like that."

"You thought I was having an affair with Roy, behind Thea's back because apparently, that's something you think I'm capable of," said Felicity accusingly.

Oliver grimaced. "I don't think you're capable of any such thing."

"Then what the hell was all that about tonight?" she asked angrily.

"Okay, I'm willing to admit that when it comes to you—" Oliver ran his hand through his hair in agitation, "—I kind of lose perspective, just a little bit. This other side to me takes over and well…" he pulled a face, "things tend to go south from there."

"Is there some reason why this other side of your brain seems convinced I'm some kind of carnival ride?" Felicity folded her arms in front of herself. "First you thought I was a stripper and men were paying to have sex with me and now you think I'm up for committing adultery at the drop of the hat. Yet, you're still trying to convince me that you're in your right mind with the kinds of judgment calls about me you're making all of a sudden."

Oliver pulled a face. "Okay, yes, I can see what you're saying there—" He stopped abruptly, face lighting up as he clicked his fingers. "That's it!"

"What's it?" she asked in annoyance, suddenly uneasy about how happy Oliver was looking.

"Proof that this isn't all about the XR-320," said Oliver triumphantly. "You just said it yourself. My behavior was erratic and I was making crazy calls about you when I was trying to work out what you were doing at the Fallen Angel."

"I find it interesting you sound so proud of that fact," said Felicity flatly.

"Don't you see? That was long before I was exposed to that toxin," said Oliver excitedly. "So, that proves you've been driving me crazy _before_ I was dosed up with that stuff." He looked very pleased with himself. "Ipso facto, my current crazy has nothing to do with the XR-320 and everything to do with me being in love with you."

"No, wait, that isn't right," said Felicity, a little flustered.

"It's completely right," said Oliver happily. He put his hands on his hips and nodded approvingly. "I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner."

"So, you were so in love with me back then that your first thought to me having a few late nights was that I was a hooker?" asked Felicity sharply.

"No, my point was that I've been losing a lot of brain function around you for a while now and you can't hold these momentary lapses against me on account of they're happening because I happen to be crazy in love with you, Felicity." He held up a finger. "Again, just to qualify, that's regular crazy, not foaming at the mouth crazy. And you know what that means?"

She put a shaking hand to her suddenly throbbing head. "I'm scared to even think."

"It means that there is no reason why we can't go on that date now," said Oliver in satisfaction. "Now that we've cleared up all the misunderstandings between us."

"You mean the misunderstanding about me being a big old whore with Roy?" said Felicity, still annoyed Oliver could think that of her.

"That and you thinking I'm not in my right mind when I've just proven that I am," said Oliver cheerfully.

"I'm not going on a date with you, Oliver," said Felicity unsteadily. She was starting to freak out. Everything was unraveling too quickly for her. Felicity couldn't keep up. She needed to think about all this new information and what it meant.

The smile dropped from Oliver's face. "What do you mean? Why not?"

"What happened to you leaving it all up to me? That you were at my mercy and I got to set the pace of this thing?" she demanded to know.

Oliver grimaced. "Turns out handing over control to someone else isn't really in my skill set," he said ruefully. "Who could have seen that coming?" Oliver gave a hopeful look. "But hey, I lasted four days. That's got to count for something, right? And now it's all moot anyways because you know I'm perfectly fine."

Felicity just stared at him. "You nearly put an arrow through Roy because you thought he and I were—"

Oliver snorted. "I wasn't going to kill Roy."

"Really?" said Felicity skeptically.

"Maybe a little bit of playful maiming if it had happened to be true but I wouldn't have killed him outright," said Oliver calmly.

"How is 'playful maiming' a thing?" asked Felicity in consternation.

Oliver clucked his tongue impatiently. "Look, none of that matters now. We'll look back on this one day and laugh—"

"Will we though?"

"These little missteps are just what every couple goes through on the way to getting together."

"I absolutely don't think that's true."

Oliver cocked his head and looked at her. "Felicity, what's the problem here? Why are you still baulking about us taking us to the next level?"

"How much time do you have for me to answer that?" she said, unable to comprehend how Oliver could even ask her such a question.

Oliver frowned. "Seriously?" He shook his head. "You know you're being completely unreasonable right now? You get that, don't you?"

Something snapped inside of Felicity at Oliver's persistence which seemed like he was more intent on winning the argument more than anything else right then. "Alright, Oliver Queen, I am going to call your bluff!" she practically yelled at him.

"I'm not bluffing when it comes to you," he countered swiftly, "but fine, yes, call my bluff if that means you'll go on a date with me."

"You only want me because you think you can't have me and as soon as you do get me, you won't want me," Felicity threw back at him, throwing out her last defense and deepest fear against him. "You'll see, we'll go on a date and it'll be a disaster and it will be all your fault but at least you'll see that what you're feeling isn't real and this—" she waved an agitated finger back and forth between them. "— this could never work!"

"You're insane, and I'm going to prove it to you," said Oliver determinedly.

"No, _you're_ insane and I'm going to prove it to _you_," she shot back, just as determinedly.

"Tomorrow night, eight o'clock. I'll pick you up and then we'll see who's the crazy one." He gave her a self-satisfied look. "Spoiler alert, it's you."

"Spoiler alert, you're an ass face!" snapped Felicity. She'd really done it now. Come this time tomorrow Oliver was going to be so bored with their attempts at conversation that he was going to be gnawing his own arm off to get away from her. The thought made her mad. Like he was all that and a bag of chips!

Oliver just smiled. "I love our foreplay," he said in satisfaction.

"This isn't foreplay, this is no play because there is no playing, we are play-free!" she said dramatically. "And I'm leaving!"

"Okay," he said easily.

Felicity went to stomp up the stairs but she was nearly there when she remembered something. She swung around to see Oliver openly ogling her butt as she was storming off. "Oh no you don't, mister!" she snapped at him. Felicity started to back up towards the stairs now, determined he wasn't going to get any kind of pleasure out of her angry exit. "My butt is not here for your entertainment!" Felicity edged her way back towards the stairs, determinedly keeping her front to Oliver, even as she stumbled a little trying to find the first step to step up onto.

Oliver just grinned, folding his arms in front of himself as he watched her slow progress up the stairs. "Just so you know, I'm pretty enamored with the front view of you too," he said conversationally. "There really isn't a losing scenario for me no matter which way you chose to do this."

"Do you have any idea how incredibly obnoxious you're being right now?" asked Felicity bitterly as she gingerly tried to make her way up the stairs backwards. It was really hard to storm off backwards she was just discovering. Who knew?

"Do you have any idea how incredibly adorable you're being right now?" Oliver countered, still with a big grin on his face as he watched her slow ascent.

"Jerk." Damn, was this staircase always this long? Felicity felt like she was never going to get to the top of them and finally make her escape. Maybe she'd get lucky and slip and break her neck and then she wouldn't have to face the consequences of her rash decision to go on that date with Oliver.

A girl could only hope.

#

Oliver finished changing back into his street clothes just as Diggle and Roy arrived back at the lair. He was still smiling after his encounter with Felicity. Okay, it had gotten a little rocky there for a bit but bottom line they were going out on a date and that was the most important thing to Oliver right then. He just needed this one chance to prove to Felicity he was all in and that they could work… really work. It was a strange thing to feel this optimistic about allowing something new in his life like this but with Felicity he couldn't help it. She just made him hopeful, had done from the first day they'd met. He smiled up at the two men as they walked down the stairs towards him, feeling like nothing could dampen his mood tonight. "Hey."

"Oh hey, look, there he is, Jumpy McJumperson," said Roy bitterly.

Oliver made a confused face. "Was that an insult because I really couldn't tell."

"Because you were jumping to conclusions, you know, Jumpy McJumperson." Roy made an annoyed face when Oliver still looked at him blankly. "I'm throwing shade you're way, man, because you're an idiot."

Diggle pursed his lips. "I think calling that shade was a bit hopeful on your behalf there, Roy. At best it was a moment's cloud cover."

"You get one swipe at me and that was it," Oliver informed the younger man conversationally.

Roy jabbed a finger at himself. "_I'm_ the wronged party here. _I_ get to decide what's enough."

Roy's outrage simply wasn't enough to dampen Oliver's good mood. He smiled. "Let's not blow this out of proportion here, Roy."

"Dude, you shot an arrow at my head!" he exclaimed.

"You were in absolutely no danger," said Oliver easily. "If I'd wanted that arrow to hit its mark, it would have. But it didn't." He arched an eyebrow. "You're welcome."

"I'm not thanking you for not shooting me in the head with an arrow!" spluttered Roy. He looked over at Diggle. "Help me out here, man. Tell him he's crazy!"

"When it comes to this particular discussion, consider me to be Switzerland," said Diggle calmly.

Roy blinked. "What's that even supposed to mean, you're Switzerland? What, your alps are covered in snow and you make great chocolate?"

"As in neutral," prompted Diggle. "You know, during World War II, Switzerland was neutral." He rolled his eyes at Roy's continued blank stare. "The public education system has really let you down, hasn't it?"

"Excuse me for not being older than dirt and remembering a war that happened a hundred years ago," snapped Roy. "What where you back then – thirty?"

"You've made one enemy of the team tonight," said Diggle conversationally. "You'd be smart not to make another one."

"I didn't do anything wrong!" bit out Roy. "I'm innocent in all of this!" He pointed his finger at Oliver. "You were the one making wild accusations based on nothing!"

"It wasn't nothing," argued Oliver. "I overheard you and Felicity talking. You know, when you were sans pants." It still stung Oliver a little that Felicity was doing something with the suit with someone other than him. She'd made it for him, it was their thing. Oliver was finding he didn't like to share when it came to Felicity these days. Who was he kidding… he'd never liked sharing her from the first day they met.

"So? We were talking, big deal! Felicity and I are allowed to talk."

"It's what you were saying."

"What were we saying?" asked Roy in consternation.

Oliver pulled a face. "Stuff about it feeling good, warm hands and how you're better than me at it."

"Felicity says I'm better at holding still for her while she adjusts the suit, you're all fidgety," said Roy flatly.

Oliver shrugged. "Okay, I can see that now that you've explained."

"What I don't get is why I have to explain in the first place," said Roy sharply. "I've never cheated on a woman before in my life and I sure as hell wouldn't be starting with Thea." He gave Oliver a pointed look. "I'm not you."

Diggle sighed heavily. "It's like you have no sense of self-preservation whatsoever."

Oliver accepted that jab because what else could he do? It wasn't like his dalliances weren't a matter of public record. But that was Ollie, stupid, reckless with the gift of a woman's heart. Oliver knew he wasn't about to be that way again, not when it came to Felicity. For all of his billions, Oliver knew there was only one treasure that was worth a damn in his life and that particular priceless gem had just agreed to go to dinner with him. His mouth involuntarily turned up into a giant smile at that thought. "I'm sorry, Roy," said Oliver. "That was totally my bad."

"You don't look very sorry," said Roy darkly. "In fact you look pretty damn pleased with yourself."

"Felicity and I are going out on a date," said Oliver happily.

"Last we hard she was calling you an ass face," observed Diggle. "How did you turn the tide on that one?"

Oliver grinned. "With logic."

Diggle pursed his lips. "Ah ha."

"No, truly, I outsmarted her," said Oliver proudly. "And she couldn't think a way out of it quickly enough, so yeah, we're going on a date."

Diggle waggled his finger over Oliver's face. "Just out of interest, we're you wearing this obnoxious, gloaty face when you cornered Felicity into this date you're so pleased with yourself about?" He grimaced. "Because if it was, I get why she bit you now."

"She bit me because I startled her," said Oliver defensively, his smile slipping slightly. "And you weren't there. The way we agreed on the date was adorable." Another involuntary smile touched Oliver's lips as he remembered Felicity attempting to walk backwards up the stairs. It had all he been able to do to stop himself from chasing her up those stairs and kissing the life out of her.

"It doesn't sound adorable, it sounds like you harassing Felicity into something she isn't sure she wants to do," said Diggle with a definite note of censure in his tone.

"That is absolutely not what happened," said Oliver firmly. He frowned slightly. "I mean, she did call me a jerk on her way out—"

Roy was looking at him with a screwed up expression on his face. "Just how exactly did you get the reputation for being so smooth with the ladies with those kinds of moves?"

"Look," said Oliver in exasperation, "you weren't there, you don't know. I'm telling you, all I wanted from Felicity was to give me a good reason why she shouldn't give us one date to find out how amazing we could be together." He shook his head. "It's not like I can force her to date me."

"You mean again, after forcing her into this initial date?" said Diggle wryly.

"I didn't force Felicity into anything," said Oliver stubbornly. "I just removed her major objection to the whole idea. That's it."

"And if the date goes really badly?" asked Roy.

"It won't."

"But if it does?"

"It won't."

"But if—"

"It won't."

"But—"

"It won't."

Diggle blew out an annoyed breath. "For the love of God, just stop, both of you. I'm losing the will to live here."

"Tomorrow night is going to be amazing," insisted Oliver, "because I've got the perfect date planned. Felicity is going to love it and we'll have a fantastic time."

Roy arched an eyebrow and leant in towards Diggle, talking in a loud aside voice. "What's happening here? Oliver sounds like he's being all positive and stuff but it's Oliver, so that can't be right."

"It's weird," agreed Diggle as they both eyed Oliver like he was an exhibit in the zoo. "Maybe he hit the ground harder tonight than we realized."

"Or maybe he's drunk?" offered up Roy, leaning over and squinting at Oliver, taking a few sniffs near him to check for the smell of liquor.

"Unlikely. Oliver is not a happy drunk."

"Maybe this isn't Oliver at all and it's his trigger happy, optimistic twin, Owen?" suggested Roy conversationally.

"Maybe you two should shut up before I do something you're going to regret," said Oliver in exasperation. "I'm in a good place. Be happy for me."

"We are happy for you, Oliver," said Diggle evenly.

Roy grunted. "Speak for yourself. I'm still POed at him." He frowned. "Just don't do anything stupid with this whole Felicity thing. We've got a good thing going here and we don't need you making a mess of things."

"Everything is going to be fine," said Oliver calmly.

Roy gave a little shudder. "Ugh, he's doing that positivity thing again. It totally gives me the creeps."

Oliver had to concede Roy had a point. Optimism hadn't exactly been his go to emotion since they'd met but with the knowledge that Felicity loved him and the prospect of their upcoming date, Oliver just couldn't help it and it felt good. Really, really good.

**A/N****: So, there you go, Oliver finally got Felicity to agree to the date… but in a way that was pretty much 180 degrees from the show and with a pretty prominent showcasing of the words 'ass face'. Lol They're having all their angst after the date, I'm doing all mine before. Well… I say all, that's not exactly going to be the case in the next story but that's literally a story for another day. ;) So, sort through your closest to find something pretty, with impractical shoes to make your calves look great – ladies, you do the same and I guess I'll see you at the Olicity date next chapter. :D **


	45. Chapter 45

**A/N****: :)**

**CHAPTER FORTY FIVE**

Felicity took a deep, unsteady breath as she looked at her reflection in the mirror, trying to calm herself down. She wiped nervously sweaty hands down over the material of her dark, form fitting green dress and tried to talk some sense into herself. "It's just a meal," Felicity admonished her reflection. "You've eaten with Oliver a hundred times. This is no different. Stop freaking out." The woman in the mirror looked anything but convinced. Of course it was different this time. They'd labelled it a date and Oliver hadn't exactly been shy about his intentions for tonight. He was going to prove to her he wasn't crazy and that he wanted her. But what if she ended up proving the opposite to him? _Careful what you wish for. _Felicity couldn't help but think of that old adage. Oliver had been so single-minded about his desire to do this date thing, Felicity had to wonder how tonight couldn't be anything but a letdown for him. After all, they already knew so much about each other. What else was there to talk about? Felicity had memorized some facts to get them over awkward pauses in the conversation but she didn't know if it'd be enough. How could she honestly let herself go and trust that Oliver really knew what he was getting himself into after what he'd been through? And even if he did, what was there to say that he couldn't as abruptly change his mind about wanting to pursue a relationship with her as he had with initially deciding he wanted to?

There were a lot of things Felicity had to consider when she thought about tonight and none of them were exactly putting her at ease. Normally Oliver was the one who got all up in his head second guessing outcomes and she was the optimistic one and Felicity was finding the role reversal more than a little unsettling. No wonder Oliver was always so broody. Living inside your head like this was a nightmare. The sound of a knock at her door had Felicity giving a little start. She gave an anxious look at her reflection. "Good luck. Try not to do or say anything stupid." Felicity rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right." Taking yet another deep breath, Felicity walked out of her bedroom and out to answer the front door on legs which were only slightly unsteady. She opened the door to find Oliver standing there, dark suit, white shirt, no tie. He looked as effortlessly perfect as he always did. _Damn him_.

"You still didn't ask who it was," tutted Oliver in exasperation.

"But I knew it was going to be you," protested Felicity quickly.

"It may not have been me," countered Oliver. "What if it was some lunatic knocking on your door?"

Felicity arched an eyebrow at him. "I'm still not completely sure there isn't." Or one answering it for that matter.

"You should ask who's there before opening the door, Felicity," said Oliver determinedly. "Seriously, this is important."

"Fine," said Felicity pertly. This she could do. Mild debating was a safe, neutral way to start tonight. She immediately closed the door in Oliver's face and folded her arms. There was a dutiful knock at the door. "Who is it?" called out Felicity sweetly.

He played along. "It's Oliver."

"How do I know it's really you? You could be just someone claiming to be Oliver Queen. You know, like a trap because I'm in so much constant danger."

"Because you know my voice," said Oliver patiently.

"Maybe it's some mastermind who's recorded your voice and rearranged the words to make up this conversation?"

"Felicity," said Oliver in exasperation.

Felicity wasn't letting it go. "Prove it to me that you're you. Say a word you've never said before."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. I haven't known you all your life. Pick a word you've never said before." Felicity was intent on continuing this particular game because it put off the inevitable conclusion of tonight and she really needed that right now.

"Umm… I don't know… turtle."

"Turtle?" she exclaimed. "Who hasn't said the word turtle in their life before?"

"I don't remember ever saying turtle before," protested Oliver. "Why would I?"

"Turtle is just one of those words that everyone has said in their life," said Felicity in exasperation. "For one thing, there are the Teenage Ninja Turtles—"

"Never cared for them," said Oliver dismissively.

"You've said the word turtle before, Oliver," insisted Felicity stubbornly.

"Felicity, you know it's me. Open the door."

She wrinkled her nose and knew she couldn't stall forever. Felicity reluctantly opened the door.

Oliver gave her a warm smile, not seeming to be put off by her stubbornness. "Hi," he said huskily.

"Hi," she returned unevenly.

Oliver's eyes never left her face. "You look beautiful."

"I didn't shave my legs," blurted out Felicity. It was a last ditch effort on her behalf to remind herself not to get carried away tonight. Scratchy legs were her last line of defense. Not exactly the Great Wall of China holding off a horde of Mongols but it was all she could come up with last minute.

He gave a crooked smile. "That's okay, I didn't shave mine either." Oliver cocked his head and gave her a curious look. "What are you thinking about right now?"

"Mongols," said Felicity immediately.

Oliver gave a little laugh. "Of course you are."

Felicity moved her weight from one foot to the other, trying to think what to say next. "I-um-I'll get my coat."

Oliver held up a hand. "Before you do, can I just say something first?"

"Ah… okay."

Oliver cleared his throat and Felicity noticed him doing his hand thing, where he tapped his fingers against his thumb in rapid succession. It usually meant he was a little agitated. She braced herself, not sure what he was going to say next.

"You know, when you were away, in my more hopeful moments, where you didn't hate me for putting you through everything I did to you—"

"I'd never hate you, Oliver," said Felicity quickly. "Particularly for something you couldn't help."

He inclined his head. "I appreciate hearing that but you can understand why I'd have my reservations that you'd ever be able to get past what I did to you on that mountain."

Felicity frowned a little at the vulnerability she could hear in his voice. "You should have more faith in me, Oliver. I'd never hold something like that against you."

"I have a huge amount of faith in you, Felicity." Oliver's lips twisted into a rueful smile. "It's me I'm not so sold on."

Felicity wasn't exactly sure what to say to that, so for once, she said nothing.

"Anyways, in those moments, I would picture how I'd ask you out," continued on Oliver. He gave a half-smile. "You know, we'd be talking about something else and then there would be a lull in the conversation and I'd ask you out to dinner and you'd be a little surprised but then you'd smile and say yes. Or maybe I'd send you a big bunch of roses with a note attached, asking you out."

Felicity was a little taken aback that Oliver was actually thinking of different scenarios about asking her out on a date. She hadn't been expecting that.

"And out of all the different ways and places I'd pictured asking you to go out with me, not one of them involved me using the words 'ipso facto', calling each other insane, followed by you calling me a jerk and walking backwards up a flight of stairs."

Felicity pulled a face. "It wasn't exactly a Hallmark moment," she agreed unhappily.

Oliver immediately shook his head. "No, it was way better than that, Felicity."

Her eyebrows shot up. "It was?"

He took a step closer to her, a suddenly intense look on his face. "For the longest time, I've had unexpected things happen to me and pretty much without exception, they've all been relentlessly horrible and soul destroying." Oliver tilted his head a little, the way he did when he was trying to make a point. "That's why I like to keep control of things so much. I don't like surprises or unexpected things happening because history has shown me that it always ends badly."

"I know," said Felicity quietly. Thinking about everything Oliver had endured always made her sad.

"And then I met you and everything changed," said Oliver simply. "Everything. It was like I was in this dark room and someone opened a shutter and I saw this little ray of sunshine for the first time in a really, really long while." His expression softened. "You showed me that unexpected doesn't have to be bad. That good things can come of not knowing what is going to happen next. You agreeing to go out with me was nothing like I imagined or planned but it was incredible and something I'll never forget." Oliver pulled a face. "Although, I do regret kind of coming across as a bit of a self-satisfied jerk. I didn't mean to, I was just so damn happy when you said yes." He pursed his lips. "Even if you were yelling at me at the time."

"Am I meant to take away from that when you're happy you're a self-satisfied jerk?" asked Felicity hesitantly.

"You're meant to take away from that _you_ make me happy." The lopsided smile was back. "And a little unhinged." Oliver quickly held up a hand. "Normal unhinged," he clarified quickly. "Not, you know, XR-320 unhinged." Oliver grimaced. "I feel like I need to keep qualifying that."

Felicity rubbed her arm and gnawed on her bottom lip. "I-ah-I'm sorry I called you an ass face. That was rude of me." She looked at him. "Accurate, but rude."

Oliver pressed his lips together and smiled. "Apology and assessment taken on board. I promise, tonight, my face won't be that of an ass."

And that was kind of the problem. Charming and sweet Oliver was a lethal combination and Felicity could already feel her knees weakening. For once Oliver seemed to be relaxed about the unknown but Felicity felt like she was more than making up for both of them.

Oliver looked over at the coat rack. "Is this your coat?" He picked up the red coat when Felicity nodded and smiled at her. "Shall we go?"

Oliver held the coat open for her and Felicity slipped her arms in, trying not to notice the way his fingers brushed her bare arms and made them tingle. Felicity turned back around and then Oliver was taking her elbow, walking her down the small number of steps from her porch. She cleared her throat nervously. "Which restaurant are we going to tonight?"

Oliver half-smiled as he walked to his car. "It's a surprise." He stopped by the passenger door. "And to that end… do you trust me?"

"I did until you said that," said Felicity nervously. "You're not going to make me eat that poisonous puffer fish or insects or anything else weird, are you?"

"No, no weird food." Oliver reached into his coat jacket. "Just this." He drew out a white silk scarf.

"You want me to accessorize?" she asked slowly.

Oliver laughed. "No." He cocked his head. "Actually, yes, maybe I do." Oliver gave her a hopeful look. "I was hoping you'd put it on… as a blindfold."

Felicity's eyes widened. "You-you want to blindfold me?"

Oliver gave a quick nod. "So where we're going will be a proper surprise."

"Can't I just close my eyes?" asked Felicity hesitantly.

"I know you, you'll open them."

Felicity opened her mouth to argue but then closed it again.

"It's alright, Felicity, just trust me. You'll love this, I promise."

"Okay," she agreed reluctantly. "But we're not going anywhere too high are we? I really don't like heights."

Oliver moved around behind her. "No, nowhere high."

"Or too low," fretted Felicity as Oliver tied the scarf around her eyes. "Depths are just heights in disguise."

Oliver chuckled. "No, nowhere low. Don't worry. We're going to be more or less at ground level."

"More or less?"

Oliver guided her into the car. "Watch your head." He settled her into the front seat of the car and did up her seatbelt. "Yes, more or less."

Deprived of her sense of sight, Felicity strained to hear her environment around her. Oliver closed her car door and then there was the sound of his retreating footsteps followed by driver's door being opened and the car dipping under Oliver's weight as he climbed into the car.

"Ready?"

"I have no idea," said Felicity honestly. She didn't know if she was ready for any of this.

"Just relax," Oliver encouraged her.

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Why are you so calm?" she asked in vague annoyance. "It's not right."

"I'm nervous," conceded Oliver, "but it's happy nerves."

"Oh, well, yay for you," said Felicity unsteadily. The sound of the car starting up came to Felicity and then they were moving.

"How was your day?"

"My day?"

"Yes, I didn't see you today, how was it?"

It was Saturday which meant they hadn't been at the office today and while Felicity had been in at the lair that day, Oliver hadn't been there. "It was good. Tracked down the rest of the guys who got away last night."

"I know, Diggle and Roy are on that tonight," said Oliver. "Good work on that, by the way."

"It wasn't that hard, that particular gang isn't exactly keeping a low profile. The guy in charge, Albert Ross, doesn't believe in low key." Felicity paused. "I'm a little surprised you didn't want to see this thing through and bring down Ross yourself to make sure his laundering business was definitely not setting up shop in Starling City."

"Diggle and Roy have it," said Oliver easily.

"You being all relaxed and abdicate-y like this is kind of weird."

"It comes down to trust," said Oliver simply. "I either trust in the team I've assembled and my gut instincts or I don't. I'm done second guessing myself on both."

"That must be nice," sighed Felicity. "The not second guessing part, I mean."

"Felicity, I know you have hesitations about tonight and I understand that," said Oliver earnestly. "All I ask is you give tonight a chance for me to prove to you that this could work… and I mean really work."

It sounded so simple, Felicity could feel herself falling into the same spell Oliver seemed to be under. She tried to remind herself of all the potential ways this could go very wrong. It wasn't her natural instinct to be guarded and pessimistic but Felicity knew that too much was at stake to throw all caution to the wind and just dive in. "Okay," she said quietly, "but just know that if it all goes really badly, I'm getting really good at repressing stuff, so we've always got that as a fallback."

"Well, I'm already good at repressing things but I don't want to be like that anymore," said Oliver determinedly. "And I definitely don't want you to be like that either. I need your honesty, Felicity. It helps me make sense of my world."

"And all of this makes sense to you?" she asked uncertainly.

"More than anything else has done in a very long time."

"Right," said Felicity unevenly, envying how sure Oliver sounded.

"Just relax and be yourself, Felicity and I'm going to do the same and we'll see where that takes us, okay? No pressure."

Felicity pursed her lips, jealous of how calm Oliver seemed to be about this whole situation. It looked like she was going to have to be nervous for the both of them. No problem.

#

"Don't make a mess," Diggle cautioned the younger man.

Roy rolled his eyes as he unwrapped his hamburger and looked around at the surrounds of the circa 1990's station wagon. "Relax, man, it's not like we can do much more damage to the old girl." He glanced over at Diggle. "What gives with this car? Why are we rockin' it old school tonight?"

"Because when you request a fourth car from the Queen Consolidated motor pool in a month after totaling the last three, they tend to lose a little faith in you," said Diggle wryly. "I've got one of the backup, backup cars." He gave a little shrug. "It's still a V6. It can get up over 80 and that's all I need in the city."

"I'm assuming that 80 is with someone pushing," said Roy wryly.

"Don't judge a book by its cover, kid," said Diggle calmly as he opened up his carton of Thai food. "It's what under the hood which counts."

"I'm guessing it's some kind of steam set up under the hood," said Roy straight-faced. "Maybe even some actual horses."

"The car is a classic. And it's retro. Retro is very big right now."

"I'd kinda prefer a car where the radio isn't still picking up signals from the fifties."

"We're trying to blend in." Diggle snapped his chop sticks apart. "This car is good for blending."

"Yeah, if we were part of the background scenery for the original Ghostbusters," said Roy flatly.

"It's a car, it has wheels and goes. That's all I need." Diggle glanced over at him. "When did you become such a label puppy? I thought coming from the Glades you'd be all about keeping it real?"

"I'm all about not ever finding out what the smell in this car is about."

"It's the smell of history."

Roy wrinkled his nose. "Has history taken its shoes off to reveal some kind of festy fungal infection?"

"Just eat your dinner," said Diggle, glancing at the bar across the road that Albert Ross was meant to be a regular. "This could be a long night. We don't know when this Ross guy is going to turn up."

"Just what I was hoping to hear on my one night off," sighed Roy. He settled into his seat and took a mouthful of his burger. "How do you think it's going?" asked Roy around a mouthful of food.

"Fine," said Diggle, loading up his chopsticks with some Thai food. "We just have to wait for this Ross guy to put in an appearance. Felicity says this is his go to bar. It's just about patience."

"Not the stake out," said Roy in exasperation. "I'm here, I know how that's going. I'm talking about Oliver and Felicity's big date. How do you think that is going?"

"I think it's none of our business," said Diggle calmly, going back to watching the streets for any signs of the king pin for the laundering racket.

"Of course it's our business," said Roy in agitation. "What if it all blows up in their faces, where does that leave us?"

"Children of a broken home?" suggested Diggle straight-faced.

"Okay, you're making a joke but that's not too far off," insisted Roy. "Oliver and Felicity are kind of like the mom and dad of our little group." He looked Diggle over. "You're the weird uncle that you don't make direct eye contact with under any circumstances—"

"I can live with that."

"And I'm the—"

"Family pet?"

"Excuse me?" said Roy in outrage. "I'm a dog now?"

"I was thinking gerbil, but okay, we can do dog if you like."

"I'm obviously the hot cousin," said Roy sharply.

"I'm willing to go to the toddler who eats dog food and shoves buttons up his nose, but no higher."

"Are you being serious right now?" asked Roy in disbelief. "If anything I'm the sexy next door neighbor everyone wants to sleep with."

"Does that include the weird uncle?" asked Diggle with feigned seriousness.

"God no!" said Roy in distress. "All the women want to sleep with, I mean, obviously."

"So, are you including the Felicity mom in that because if you are, that kind of talk is what nearly got an arrow between your eyes already."

"And that's my point," said Roy in exasperation. "Oliver is acting all crazy when it comes to Felicity—"

"I don't think it's an act. I think Oliver is genuinely insane over Felicity," said Diggle easily. He'd been watching Oliver closely ever since he'd released the younger man from that cell after being given the antidote. Oliver was clearly a changed man and Diggle was a little wary about how those changes were going to manifest themselves when it came to Felicity. That was why he kept on telling Oliver to slow down. Not that the other man was listening. Although Diggle suspected this was Oliver's version of taking things slowly. But what he had seen with Oliver was a man completely and utterly undone by his love for a woman and Diggle had decided that wasn't exactly a bad thing. Oliver had been so tightly wound for so long, it was kind of a relief to see him unravel a little bit.

"Not what I want to hear when I've already had a close call with Oliver's jealousy when it comes to Felicity," said Roy unevenly. "It's not my fault I ooze sexuality."

Diggle's lips twitched. "You ooze alright and I think that explains the smell in the car."

"I'm just saying that I don't know if this thing with Oliver and Felicity is such a great idea."

"You don't want them to be happy?"

"Of course I do but Oliver being happy and in love with Felicity almost got me killed last night. I don't want to even think about what broody, miserable Oliver might do to me."

Diggle glanced at him. "You do realize this isn't all about you, right?"

"It's a little bit about me, particularly if I end up with more holes in my body because of this Felicity/Oliver thing then I started out with," said Roy unevenly.

"Oliver is not going to put an arrow in you," said Diggle firmly.

"He's done it once already," argued Roy.

"That was to keep you safe."

"Exactly. He impaled me with a sharp object because he cared. What's he going to do when—"

Suddenly their conversation was interrupted with a knock on the window. Diggle immediately turned back around in his seat to see who it was, annoyed at himself for letting someone sneak up on him like that. Damn but this kid could be distracting.

"Oh no," said Roy in distress as he saw who it was at Diggle's window.

Diggle's jaw hardened as he looked at the newcomer as well.

_Oh no, indeed. _

**A/N****: Guesses as to who it might be? Hank is offering a butt scratch to the first person who gets it right… I'm unclear as to whether you'd be giving or receiving with that particular 'gift'… and to be honest with you, I'm not sure which one you should be rooting for. **


	46. Chapter 46

**A/N****: Hello all, back again I see… excellent. :D **

**You may need to wear sunglasses while reading this to protect against my self-satisfied glow having done housework all day. Yes, I have scrubbed, dusted, vacuumed, mopped, washed up, cleaned out fridges (in the back of which I found Jimmy Hoffa's body, yes, that's how long it's been since I've delved into those recesses… you know, I was going to say the Lindberg baby with that little joke… but then I thought, is child abduction ever something to make a joke about, even 80 years after the fact… I came down on a solid 'no' on that one… there are some things that are never funny, no matter how much time has passed… see, I do think about these author's notes, there is a kind of a filter there, granted, not probably one big enough for the job but there is still one in place). **

**Hmm, where was I? Oh yes, the pious glow of someone having de-cesspooled their cesspool. I'm thinking of just closing up the house and living in the garden now (which I also watered and pruned), just so it doesn't ever get dirty again. I'll get back to you on where I end up falling on that one. Anyways, as a result, I didn't write today… not one dot, not one tittle… yes, today has been tittle-less… I have been without tittle. It's a little weird because it's a rare day that I don't write anything… although technically I'm writing this now… so I guess a little tittle has crept in there. Now my point seems utterly moot. Okay, just ignore all of the above, seems I was going nowhere with that after all. **

**Now, let's actually go somewhere and chat briefly (as briefly as I am capable of anyways) about the story so far. I was chatting with one of my gentle readers, Kazy, about Oliver in this story and how I was trying to reconcile the fact that my Oliver as opposed to show Oliver are quite wildly different now… but then, maybe they're not is what I came to the ultimate conclusion, after Kazy let me patiently ramble away to her/him (I think you're female, Kazy but I thought I should cover my bets ;) ). **

**Oliver on the show is single-minded, arguably to a fault. He's also a guy who doesn't do half-way. He's a go hard or go home kinda guy. Like, his father tells him to make right the wrongs he visited on SC… so Oliver goes back as a serial killer vigilante of bad guys. One can't help but think there was some kind of middle ground there he could have gone for. But of course, we wouldn't have the show we do if Oliver was any other way. **

**Basically, show Oliver is living in fear. He left the island but when he came back to SC, he made himself into an island. The people were like boats in his life, circling said island but none were ever really allowed to dock and check out the sights on Oliver-land. Until Felicity… who just kind of did… without Oliver being aware, without his permission, he just accidentally kind of let her dock and he didn't know why… 'there was just something about you' as the now famous quote goes. Show Oliver came close to giving full permission to be on his island in the S3 premier and then it all went to hell in a hand basket because a giant gorilla burst out of the bushes of his island and mauled Felicity. Now, he's trying to shove her back on that boat and get her to sail away to parts unknown but at least she'll be safe… only now Oliver is having to deal with the fact that his island is now Felicity-less and it's just him and the gorilla and even though we share 98% DNA with the apes, there are just some things that there are no substitutes for and that's one of them… by law, actually, in case anyone is unclear. **

**So, circling my analogy back around on itself, there is Oliver and the gorilla (ie the fight to bring all the bad guys to justice) alone together on his island and then in Ep2 Oliver has that moment of 'crap, I don't actually want it to be just me and the gorilla, I want more'. And so the s/l arc of S3 is set up. Will Oliver ultimately man up and get over all of his fears and set sail after Felicity, to bring her back to his island or is it just going to be him and Gary (that's the gorilla's name, obviously) forever? What wins out in the end when it comes to Oliver defining himself, fear or hope? **

**And yet another long winded way for me to circle back around to my Oliver. In my story Oliver's lived through a terrible experience and in doing so, he's seen what he wants, what he needs to be happy and more than that, is giving himself permission to be happy. That's where my Oliver is at (and hopefully where the show's Oliver will end up too at some point). So, knowing that, he's all in when it comes to Felicity, balls out, heart on his sleeve, he's a bull in a china shop because that is how Oliver is. He doesn't do subtle, not once he's fixed on a course of action (hello, green leathers and a bow and arrow, yeah, not subtle). **

**So, he's all in with Felicity and there is going to be a certain… ferocity, I suppose is the word, to his desire for her to give him a chance. I think that's pretty much Oliver's MO, just directed at Felicity this time, instead of some crusade. The main thing I don't want to have happen is have Felicity come across as someone too weak to stand up to Oliver. She's always given as good as she's gotten with him (usually better in fact) and her hesitation now isn't about not being able to stand up to Oliver's 'bullying' her into a date. She wants this, she wants him, Felicity loves Oliver, we know that. The thing is, Felicity has always been a ballast when it comes to Oliver, she's his counterweight – when he's down, she pushes him up, when he's hell bent on revenge, she's the voice of reason, when he's being a jerk, she tells him so. Felicity is always the push to his pull or the pull to his push, whatever it takes to keep Oliver balanced. It's not a chore or even a conscious choice I think, it's just an instinct and why they work so well together. So, with Oliver going so hard one way, it's her natural bent to balance him out the opposite way. He's saying 'jump, it doesn't matter if we fall!' and she's saying 'wait, it kinda does!' – always with the balance between these two. And of course, at some point they always even themselves out and come to the same point about things… which is the whole point of the journey. **

**So yeah, that's the conclusion I ultimately come to when thinking about my story and where my characters are at. I think you've got to be able to justify your character's actions otherwise it's just random stuff causing random reactions in a story and I don't think that's ultimately satisfying for the reader, at least not when I read something. **

**Wow, another huge A/N… sorry guys, I'm really bad like that, I know. *blushes and hangs head in shame* **

**I will say that there were a lot of correct guesses to the question I posed at the end of the last chapter… and without fail, not one of you wanted the prize on offer… funny that. Lol I will also say that we're not actually going to catch up with Riggle in this chapter, it's all Olicity. They just have so much to say to one another after all that circling around each other and the misunderstandings that I couldn't break up their talking in this chapter. But, we will catch up with our erstwhile heroes in the next chapter, so never fear. ;) **

**In the meantime, if your eyes haven't melted from reading all of the above, here is the chapter… :D **

**CHAPTER FORTY SIX**

_No pressure._

Oliver's words were ringing in her ears as they drove along. Easy enough to say but the trouble was there was pressure and Felicity knew she couldn't be the only one feeling it, despite all of Oliver's talk of calmness. Be herself. Felicity wasn't even sure what that meant and the silence between them was growing. She had no idea where they were going, completely disorientated by the blindfold and she couldn't see Oliver's face so that was unnerving her a little as well. Felicity felt a burning need to fill the quiet between them. "The word 'swims' looks the same upside down as it does right side up," she blurted out.

Oliver gave a little laugh. "I wondered when we'd hit the general knowledge section of our date. This time I've come prepared. Potatoes absorb wi-fi signals the same way people do and are used to test and improve internet signals on planes."

"Is that true?" said Felicity in amazement, turning to look at him even though she was still blindfolded.

"Apparently so."

"I'll have to try that out at the lair," said Felicity thoughtfully. "Sometimes the wi-fi can be a bit patchy. Drives me crazy, like last night."

"I thought I was the one driving you crazy last night," said Oliver cheekily.

"It was a tie," said Felicity flatly, still remembering what it had been like to be so scared that Oliver might never come back to her. But she didn't want to talk about that, worried about where the conversation might lead. Instead she looked to distract Oliver away from the topic with the most random thing she knew. "After the Roman Emperor Nero's wife died, he found a boy who looked like her, removed his testicles and had him appear in public as his wife."

"Ouch," said Oliver unevenly. "And I thought I wasn't great at handling grief. Okay, my turn. Pineapples were such a status symbol in the 18th century England that you could rent one to take to a party."

"Pineapples," laughed Felicity. "Seriously?"

"I guess they were pretty exotic back then. Your turn."

Despite herself, Felicity was starting to relax with their little game. "In Australia, a pig stole eighteen beers from a camp site, got drunk and then tried to fight a cow."

"Flashback to my college years," said Oliver in amusement.

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, we've all made some questionable choices in college."

"What was one of yours?"

Felicity hesitated, not having meant to open that particular can of worms. Tonight was definitely not the time to go into the fact that college was when she'd made her biggest mistake to date. "Oh, you know," she said vaguely, "I really think that Roman mythology class wasn't the smartest choice. Haven't really been able to use that in real life."

"I don't know, you used that Aeschylus guy to make a point to me a while back."

Felicity's eyebrows shot up despite the blindfold. "You remember that?"

"A guy getting killed when an eagle drops a tortoise on his head… yeah, that visual kinda stays with you."

"Okay, so maybe it wasn't a complete write off then," said Felicity unsteadily. She shook her head. "I'm getting dizzy. Are we going in circles?"

"No, just the occasional turn."

"I think it's the blindfold, I've got no point of reference and my balance has never been that great. I actually think there is something wrong with my inner ear. Either that or I've just got the klutz gene. That's why I can't take painkillers."

"Sorry, I don't get the link."

"Painkillers remove what little balance I do have. I take a couple of Tylenol and I'm like a newborn giraffe, all flailing limbs and floppy neck… although with a lot less mucous-y afterbirth… obviously."

"Obviously."

Felicity could hear the amusement in his voice.

"I didn't know that about you."

Felicity suddenly felt like she was toppling to one side. She panicked and stuck out her arms to balance herself. "Are we falling, what's happening?" Felicity asked unevenly as her hand smacked against some miscellaneous part of Oliver's body in her attempts to regain her equilibrium. "Oh, sorry," she apologized quickly. "I didn't mean to hit your-your… I don't know what I hit other than it was hard but seeing as all of your body is hard, it's hard to know which hard bit I hit." Felicity bit her bottom lip. "Wow, I said hard a lot in that sentence."

"We turned left."

"What?"

"We didn't roll over, we turned left."

"Oh, okay, sorry, overreacted a little bit. Not being able to see is a bit unnerving."

"I don't want you to unnerved. Just relax, Felicity. You're buckled into a car seat. Nothing is going to happen to you."

"People always say that in the movies just before kapowy!" Felicity flung her hands out for dramatic effect and once again accidentally hit Oliver. "Oh! Oliver I'm sorry. What did I hit then?"

"My face," said Oliver easily. "It's okay. I only need one good eye to drive."

Felicity blushed. "Sorry."

"Stop apologizing. It's fine."

Felicity gave a groan. "If you're planning on surviving this drive, you may want to reconsider the blindfold thing," she cautioned him unsteadily.

"It'll be worth it when you see the surprise," said Oliver calmly. "And I think every date should involve a little playful eye gouging personally."

Felicity laughed at his teasing and this time went to intentionally slap him but Oliver grabbed her hand instead. He threaded his fingers through hers and drew her hand over to rest on what she assumed was his thigh. Felicity swallowed hard at the feeling of her hand being entwined in his.

"I'm just going to rein this thing in until we get where we're going," said Oliver impishly. "This kind of reminds me of our first date."

"Your hand was on my thigh then." Felicity bit her bottom lip. Why did she say that? And she really didn't need her thigh tingling at just the memory of that touch. Stupid body was no help at all in keeping her feet on the ground when it came to Oliver.

"That can be arranged," said Oliver mischievously.

Felicity blushed despite herself. "And it wasn't a date," she said quickly.

"I thought we landed on date-adjacent," argued Oliver.

"Did we?" asked Felicity, feigning vagueness.

"We did," said Oliver firmly. "I remember everything about that night."

Felicity released a strained breath as Oliver squeezed her hand a little more tightly and she didn't need to be able to see him to know that he was thinking about their passionate kisses which had followed that particular car ride. She scrambled to try and think of a way to distract them both. "At least you haven't got that weird smelling thing going on with me anymore. That's something." Her comment was met with a long silence from Oliver. Felicity turned her head to look at him, even though she couldn't see him. "Oliver?"

He cleared his throat. "Well… and I don't want you to read anything into this like the XR-320 isn't completely out of my system or whatever but—"

"You can still smell me?" gasped Felicity in distress.

"Why do you say that like it's a bad thing?" said Oliver in exasperation. "It's not. I find it very soothing."

"It's not soothing, it's weird," said Felicity in agitation. "You can smell me. I knew I should have worn perfume tonight."

"I like it when you don't," said Oliver quickly. "I don't like strong perfumes on women and I particularly don't like it on you because it masks your own scent—"

"Kind of the point," said Felicity unsteadily.

"Which I happen to love," continued on Oliver, as though she hadn't spoken. "It's as sexy as hell."

Felicity felt her cheeks burn at his admission. "I-I thought you found it soothing?"

"Weirdly enough it's kind of both to me. Makes me feel all warm inside but at the same time it makes me feel… you know… all hot and bothered on the outside."

Felicity kind of knew how he felt. Hot and bothered were definitely two words she could relate to right then.

"Am I freaking you out?"

"No," squeaked Felicity. It was more that she was freaking herself out because it was taking a big act of willpower not to throw herself on top of him and demand Oliver show her exactly what he meant. Why couldn't the man be just a little less sexy? Would that kill him?

"I don't want to freak you out. I just want us to be honest with one another," said Oliver sincerely.

"That's what Tim said to me," said Felicity faintly. "Relationships can be simple if you just are honest with one another."

"Well, he sounds like quite the love guru with those pearls of wisdom," said Oliver darkly.

His hand tightened on Felicity's and she squirmed a little in her seat. "Ah… Oliver, my hand… you're kind of hurting it."

Oliver immediately relaxed his grip. "I'm so sorry," he said hastily.

Felicity pulled her hand away and gave it a little shake, trying to return blood supply to it. "No problem. Guess you don't know your own strength sometimes."

"Tim's lucky he doesn't know my own strength," muttered Oliver under his breath.

"What?"

Oliver didn't immediately answer but she could feel him moving around a little in his seat. "Are you doing something with your head because if you are, I can't see it? Use your words, Oliver."

"I'm just trying to choose them carefully," said Oliver, sounding a little agitated.

"About Tim?"

"Yes, about _Tim_," said Oliver sarcastically. "I can't believe you went on a date with the guy, not with all the stuff we had going on between us."

"I just think sometimes with the kind of life we lead that it's better to be with someone that you don't really care about, rather than with someone you do."

"Ouch."

"Yeah, that speech sucks, doesn't it?"

"So, is that why you did it? To give me a taste of my own medicine?"

"No," said Felicity in horror. "I'd never be that petty."

"Then what?"

"I don't know, that tactic seemed to be working for you, so I thought I'd give it a try."

"It didn't work for me," said Oliver in frustration. "That's the point that I finally worked out. I want that investment in another person and I want them to invest in me the same way. It's as scary as hell to admit that but I can't run from that reality anymore, Felicity. I'm done trying to control everything around me, particularly when it comes to you." He paused. "Unless Tad turns up again. Then I'll probably just punch him in the face."

"It's Tim and you know it and trust me, I think after your little performance at our date, I don't think Tim wants anything to do with me."

"Good," said Oliver in satisfaction. "He's not quite as dumb as he looks."

"You know this possessiveness is kind of unfair. I don't get to do that when it comes to you," said Felicity in mild frustration.

"Do you want to be?" he asked quickly. "Possessive, I mean?"

"What would be the point?" she asked in exasperation. "I'd spend my entire day driving myself crazy when it comes to all the women you know and by 'know' I mean in the Biblical sense."

"Felicity, I can't undo my past."

"I know, and I'm not asking you to but I'm just saying that if anyone should be worried about third parties in this relationship, it's me. You're pretty much in the clear on that one."

"What about you and Barry? I mean, I know you're still in contact with him—"

"Long distance doesn't really work for us. Even though he could be in Starling City in a flash—"

"Pun intended."

"Obviously."

"But?"

"But, well, I think we both kind of just realized our lives belonged in different cities and you can't make a relationship work long term like that. You need to be able to see that person everyday—"

"Like if you worked with them or something," said Oliver innocently. "Or had this constant, night time gig booked with them where you saw them for most of the hours you were awake."

"Yes, Oliver," said Felicity wryly. "Something like that. Like with me and Diggle."

"Ha, ha," said Oliver dryly. "But seriously, don't even joke about it."

"Me and Digg? Really?"

"I went there with you and Roy," said Oliver unevenly. "Although that wasn't totally my fault."

"It absolutely was your fault."

"Don't give the guy my suit," said Oliver territorially. "That's just not right."

"He was just helping me with some repairs after Diggle kinda destroyed it," protested Felicity.

"That's even worse," grumbled Oliver. "When you're adjusting that suit, your hands are everywhere. I should know. Why do you think I love it so much?"

"I thought you loved the suit because it stops you from getting hurt or worse," said Felicity in surprise.

"That's good too but when you're adjusting it on me, hands all over my body…"

Felicity could actually hear the smile in Oliver's voice.

"I'm not going to lie… that's pretty damn awesome."

Felicity blushed yet again. "Me touching you was in the name of science," she said in embarrassment. "How can you… I mean… that wasn't what I was…"

"I know and the fact that you don't know you're doing that to me was kind of a turn on all in itself," said Oliver in satisfaction.

"I'll know now," she said sharply, suddenly very nervous about the next time she and Oliver would be working with the suit.

"Which also works for me," said Oliver throatily.

"Stop flirting," said Felicity in distress, enjoying it way too much.

"I'm not flirting, I'm being honest. Isn't that what your love doctor, Todd, said is the way to a healthy relationship?"

"It's Tim and since when are you taking advice from him?"

"Since it keeps on making you blush that delightful shade of pink."

"I'm not blushing," lied Felicity hastily. "It-it's just hot in here." She fumbled for the door. "I need to wind down a window."

"No need, we're here."

Felicity felt the car slow down and then pull up. She had no idea where they were. Oliver was out of the car and then he was opening her door and helping her out. "Remind me again, where is here?" asked Felicity unsteadily.

"It's a surprise."

"The whole date isn't going to be me blindfolded, is it?" she said only half-joking.

"No, I just have to get you inside, and then you can take the blindfold off."

Felicity heard some approaching footsteps and she tilted her head. "Is someone else here?"

"Yes, don't worry, this will only take a moment. Don't move, I'll be right back."

Felicity heard Oliver walk a little bit away and then there were the sound of men's voices talking quietly to one side. She strained to hear what they were saying but it was no use. After a brief conversation, she heard the other man speak more loudly.

"Have a good evening, Mr. Queen. And you too, ma'am."

"This isn't a sex thing," blurted out Felicity, suddenly conscious of how it must look to the other man. "The blindfold, I mean, it isn't a sex thing." She hesitated briefly. "I'm 92% sure it isn't a sex thing," Felicity backtracked a little. With Oliver these days she just couldn't be entirely sure.

"He's gone."

Felicity started violently as Oliver's warm voice was suddenly in her ear and she realized he'd come up behind her without her realizing. For a big man he could be pretty stealthy. Suddenly Oliver's hands were on her hips from behind her. "And it's not a sex thing." He pressed the briefest of kisses to her neck, making Felicity give another little start. "Unless you want it to be," said Oliver throatily, warm breath back in her ear.

Okay, this man was sex on a stick. How was any woman meant to keep their head around him? Her own head was spinning right then, which, with the blindfold, wasn't a good combination. Felicity felt herself beginning to list to one side as her equilibrium was put under considerable duress. Oliver immediately drew her back against his body to steady her, fingers splaying out over her hips. "Whoa," he breathed in her ear, "careful."

That was what she was trying to be, careful. But Oliver was making it incredibly hard to want to do anything other than throw caution to the wind and join him in his madness. "I think I liked it better when you were being an ass face," confessed Felicity unsteadily, feeling herself lean back into him, despite all her best intentions.

"I think I made a mistake touching you," said Oliver, his voice sounding strained now as he dropped his head into the hollow of her neck, "because now I don't know if I can let you go." He nuzzled his cheek against the delicate skin of her neck and inhaled deeply. "God but you smell amazing," said Oliver raggedly. "I missed you so much when you were away, Felicity. Not being able to see you every day, knowing you were so far away and not being able to see your face and know what was going on with you. It was complete torture."

Felicity's heart was pounding in her chest and she was finding it hard to breathe. "I-I missed you too, Oliver."

His hands tightened on her hips. "I was so scared you wouldn't come back to me. That I'd driven you away from me forever."

Felicity knew that just wasn't a possibility when it came to Oliver. She was accusing him of being an addict when it came to her, because of being poisoned but Felicity knew she was the real addict right then. "Maybe that would have been a good thing," she said forlornly, thinking that she was never going to get her own addiction under control by being this close to Oliver, any more than he was going to get his. "I-I don't think being around me is good for you, Oliver." It made Felicity very sad to say something like that but she feared it was true.

"You're wrong," said Oliver in a low voice, "and I'm going to prove it to you. This isn't about me having some chemically-induced obsession. This is about me acknowledging what you've always meant to me and finally being man enough to do something about it." He drew in an unsteady breath. "And go about it the right way." Oliver kept his hands on her hips but took a little step back, so their bodies weren't touching anymore. "I want you, Felicity, but I don't want you to get confused and think I only want your body. This isn't about sex for me. It's about the whole package. I want it all when it comes to you and that includes going on dates… like this one. I don't want to skip any steps. I've done that in the past with other women and I want this time to be different. I _need_ it to be different. And tonight, I guess I'm just hoping that you'll give me a chance to show you that I'm sincere and that I am the kind of man you could have a life with." Oliver hesitated and sounded a little unsure. "You know, if that turns out to be something you do really want."

Oliver was being so damn convincing, Felicity wasn't sure what to say to any of that. She wanted to believe him but Felicity knew as soon as she climbed aboard Oliver's romance train, she wasn't going to get off, even if there was a train wreck looming. Oliver talked about being all in but Felicity knew when she said those words, it wasn't going to be something she'd ever take back. It was just really hard to know if Oliver understood that about her and could offer her the same thing in return, even if he thought he could.

"And tonight is the first time I get to prove all of what I'm saying is true," continued on Oliver. "Come on." He gave her a little nudge. "Just start walking. I've got you."

Felicity had to wonder if Oliver had the first inkling of how true that was. He definitely had her but did she really have him? Regardless of not having an answer to that question, Felicity started walking, with Oliver guiding her, hands still on her waist and murmuring little instructions in her ear to step up, turn left, ten more steps and then they were on a gentle decline. There was this strange mechanical sound gently buzzing around them but Felicity couldn't quite work out what it was. "Where are we?" she asked, mystified. There was a smell in the air which wasn't quite right either. Their footsteps bounced off walls that sounded close and Felicity just couldn't put it all together. The fact that she couldn't hear anyone else around them only added to her confusion.

"Somewhere I hope will make you smile," said Oliver simply as they stopped walking and he undid her blindfold.

Felicity blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision after the blindfold. The lighting was low but as the world around her came into focus Felicity let out a tiny gasp of amazement. And for one of the few times in her life, words escaped her…

**A/N****: I know, I know, you're pissed because you STILL don't know where the date is but technically they're already on their date, so this chapter still counts as the date. I told you – there is going to be a lot of talking between these two, and that takes time. ;) So, any guesses on where Oliver has taken Felicity for their first, official date… I'll give you a hint… it's **_**not**_** Italian. :D **


	47. Chapter 47

**A/N****: I'll keep this intro short as my calves are still sore from all the rambling I did in the last A/N. Olicity cuteness, Briggle cuteness… anyone who is a diabetic should probably take a shot of insulin before reading all the sweetness going on, particularly with Olicity. I don't think there are any other health warnings I should give you with this chapter. You're pretty much good to go. **

**Have at it… :) **

**CHAPTER FORTY SEVEN**

Roy and Diggle stared back at the face smiling at them through the car window.

"Hello, my darlings," said Bunny cheerily. "Fancy meeting you two here." Without waiting for an invitation, Bunny promptly opened the back door and climbed into the back seat. He smiled brightly. "So, what are we playing?"

Diggle frowned. "You can't be here, Bunny."

"And yet, here I am." He fluttered his eyelashes at Diggle. "It's like fate, our paths keep crossing."

"Really, fate?" said Diggle skeptically. "This doesn't seem like your end of town somehow. Care to try again?"

Bunny waved a breezy hand at him. "Fate moves in mysterious ways. Maybe Pang and I were just sightseeing some of the lowlights of your charming city? Maybe we became lost and then saw the two of you, like a beacon of hope in our so far hopeless wanderings? Familiar faces at which we can tether our aimless meanderings to guide us to safer ground."

Diggle arched an eyebrow.

Bunny shrugged. "Or maybe I planted a little sub-epidermal tracking device on my little kitten the last time I saw him so I would know where to find my sweet boy next time I was in town."

Roy sat up straighter in his seat. "Wait, what? Sub-epidermal… that means like _in_ me, right?" He gave Bunny a look of horror. "You've put something in me without me knowing?"

Bunny gave him a coquettish smile. "Oh honey, I don't want to brag, but if I put something in you, you'd notice," he said in satisfaction.

"You can't be here," repeated Diggle firmly.

"Hold on, hold on," said Roy unevenly, "we haven't cleared up the whole me having something in me thing yet."

"You don't have something in you," said Diggle a little impatiently.

"Don't be so quick to write it off, brown bear," said Bunny impishly, "the night is still young. Let's not take any tantalizing possibilities off the table prematurely."

"Stop that," snapped Roy. "Not gay, remember?"

"You're very young to define yourself so emphatically," noted Bunny casually. "You should be open to new experiences."

"I don't need any penis-related new experiences," said Roy flatly. "I know what I like and that isn't it. I like boobs."

"One doesn't negate the other," said Bunny breezily.

Roy frowned and turned around in his seat, scanning the streets outside. "Right, so where is Pang anyway?"

"She's up the street a little. The Rolls does tend to attract some attention somewhat and you seemed intent on being all low key and such, I didn't want to draw the eye." Bunny cocked his head and eyed Roy with interest. "You squeaked when you turned around. I wonder why that is?" Without warning Bunny sat forward and reached into the front seat, pulling at Roy's hoodie to partially reveal the red leathers of his Arsenal outfit.

"Hey," said Roy quickly, slapping away Bunny's hand. "No touching!"

"You're wearing leather," said Bunny excited. "Oh, please tell me that it's a complete outfit." He clapped his hands together. "This is _so_ my kind of evening! I'm totally in."

"No, you're out," said Diggle sharply. "We're working right now, Bunny and there are no civilians allowed."

"What if I said I had my own set of leathers?" asked Bunny brightly, clearly undeterred. "The pants are ass-less… that's not going to be a problem, is it? What's the dress code on where we're going?"

"_We_ aren't going anywhere," said Diggle determinedly. "_You're_ going to get out of this car and head back on your merry way."

"But I can help," protested Bunny. "I'm an extraordinarily useful man. Very versatile… and flexible." He winked at Roy. "In case anyone is interested."

"We're not," said Roy in vexation. "And unless you've got an in with a guy named Albert Ross, then we don't need your help."

Diggle gave him an exasperated look. "Really? Why don't you just open the car door and announce it to the universe. Do you even know what the word 'covert' means?"

"Oh, I'm familiar with the Mariner," said Bunny easily.

They both turned to look at him.

"The who?" asked Roy in confusion.

"That's what he's called in certain circles, the Mariner. Albert Ross… albatross," prompted Bunny. "You know, as in the Rime of the Ancient Mariner."

"So, what, the guy's really old?" asked Roy hesitantly.

Bunny put his hand to his face and gave Roy an enamored look. "You are just too adorable for words, kitten. I could so Eliza Doolittle the hell out of you right now... it'd be life affirming for both of us, I just know it."

Roy pulled back a little, face screwing up. "What the hell is that? Some kind of sex act?"

Bunny burst out laughing. "Oh sweetheart, you're just too delicious. I'm talking about you being Eliza Doolittle to my Professor Higgins. You know, as in My Fair Lady."

Roy looked at him blankly.

"It's a stage play, a musical actually, originally adapted from the book Pygmalion."

"I've only been to one play and that was with Thea. It was the Vagina Monologues." Roy pulled a face. "Man, talk about false advertising. The play was _nothing_ like what I thought it was going to be. It was a total rip."

Bunny clutched his hands to his chest, a huge, indulgent smile on his face. "I could so just eat you up with a spoon right now, kitten."

"How do you know Ross?" interrupted Diggle.

"We did some business briefly. I didn't care for him. I don't trust a man who wears white shoes with a black suit. I find that an egregious fashion faux paus that I simply can't overlook. That kind of clueless fashion sense speaks to the lack of a soul, and I'm not inclined to do business with such peoples."

Diggle just stared at him. "You're an unscrupulous arms dealer," he said wryly. "Most of your clients are soulless."

"Untrue, my darling," tutted Bunny. "I have my philanthropic side. Look at me offering my services to you now. Besides, to me, anyone who has passion, has a soul and believe you me, I deal with some incredibly passionate people in my line of work."

"I'm sure you do," said Diggle flatly.

"But that being said, the Mariner wasn't one of them. I found him to be a wholly unamusing human being and I can't abide them." Bunny pursed his lips. "So, what do you want with him exactly?"

"That's not important," said Diggle coolly.

"It's important enough for you to be sitting out here eating questionable food from cardboard boxes." Bunny looked around at the interior of the car. "And in a very interesting choice of vehicles." He wrinkled his nose. "Am I the only one smelling that somewhat off putting odor emanating from parts unknown back here?"

"We don't know what it is," said Roy. "I'm thinking feet… possibly dismembered ones. And we're here because Ross is meant to go to that strip joint across the road every night."

Diggle looked at Roy in disbelief. "Seriously, again with the oversharing? When I first met you, you barely did more than communicate in clicks and whistles. All of a sudden you're releasing some kind of hourly news reports on our business to the world. What's with that?"

Roy grimaced. "I don't know. I open my mouth and things just fall out around the guy. I don't know why."

"I'm a good listener," said Bunny knowingly. "People feel like they can open up to me. And you're wasting your time here tonight, by the way. The Mariner won't be here."

"Where will he be?" asked Diggle calmly.

"The man is an avid gambler, will bet on anything and I happen to know that there is a huge cock fight currently underway on the other side of town. There is no way the Mariner won't be there." He smiled cheerily at them. "I could absolutely get you into the event, no questions asked."

"Cock fighting?" said Roy warily. "That had better not be a euphemism for something I don't want to think about."

Bunny laughed. "Unfortunately no, it isn't, but I do like the way you think, dear boy. I'd enjoy that a whole lot more than watching two unfortunate roosters attempting to tear each other apart." He gave a little shudder. "So barbaric."

"Just give us the address," said Diggle evenly. "We'll handle it from there."

"You'll never get in. It's by invitation only and they're very strict on the matter. As in 'shoot you in the face and ask questions later' level of unreasonable on the subject if you presented yourself without being invited."

"There will be a back way in," said Roy confidently. "There always is."

"That's more heavily guarded than the front entrance. Trust me, sweat peas, unless you're looking to take on every bad man in Starling City simultaneously, you'll need me to facilitate your access to the humorless Mr. Ross." Bunny sat back in his seat, stretching out his arms and resting them along the back seat. He crossed his legs and beamed at them. "And you're lucky, my darlings, that my evening contains an opening big enough to accommodate both of you and your plans for tonight." He winked at them both. "And I implore you to take that as many ways as you'd like."

Diggle and Roy exchanged looks as they both realized that they'd been back into a corner and then Diggle's face hardened. "Crap," he said darkly.

"I too share your excitement at what the evening might have in store for us," said Bunny chirpily. "Now then, I do think we should take my car, what do you say, eh?"

"I don't like this," said Roy unevenly. "I feel like this is going to end badly."

"Oh kitten, you're far too young to be this pessimistic," said Bunny easily. "Unclench something on that tight, hard little body of yours and have some fun."

Roy and Diggle looked at each other again.

"You're right," said Diggle conversationally. "This is going to end badly."

#

Oliver was watching Felicity's expression intently, not taking his eyes off her. Despite all his big talk of being calm and in control of himself he was as nervous as hell. He needed tonight to go well, for Felicity to enjoy herself and to start seeing him as a viable romantic partner and not some deranged lunatic under the influence of a toxic gas. Felicity hadn't spoken yet, she was just looking up and turning around in slow circles. Her being this quiet for so long had him on edge. Oliver cleared his throat. "Do you like it?"

Felicity slowly turned back around to face him, her eyes wide. "Oliver," she squeaked, "this is amazing." Her gaze drifted to their surrounds again. "How… when… how did you do this?"

Oliver smiled. "I made a few phone calls and it all just kind of fell into place." It hadn't been exactly that simple but after some significant donations being made, Oliver had managed to secure the place he'd immediately known he wanted to take Felicity on their first proper date. The Starling City Aquarium.

They were currently standing in one of the viewing rooms where the walls and ceiling were all made of glass to afford the best possible view of the myriad of sea creatures housed in the enormous tanks of the aquarium. All around them multicolored fish swam back and forth amongst a manmade coral reef. Sharks and rays sailed majestically over their heads in an unhurried perusal of their surrounds while an assortment of crustaceans, seahorses, starfish and various other sea creatures were littered the sea bottom. In the middle of the room was a beautifully set table, complete with a white linen tablecloth, a vase of red roses and flickering candlelight. At each setting there was a silver cloche, hiding away the meal Oliver had organized for them.

"I-I really don't know what to say," said Felicity unsteadily, eyes drifting back to the spectacle of the fish swimming all around them.

"Well, this was the closest I could come to granting your wish to be a mermaid. I couldn't turn you into one, but I thought I could give you the mermaid experience." Oliver gave a lopsided smile. "You know, with a lot less likelihood of drowning in a bathtub of salty water."

She put her hand to her chest, looking overwhelmed. "I can't believe you did this."

Oliver wet his suddenly dry lips. "Felicity, I know tonight, my pushing you into this date—" He cleared his throat nervously. "What I'm trying to say is that I'm not unaware that when I get an idea in my head, I can be pretty single minded about it."

Felicity half-smiled. "Yes, you can be."

"But, and again, this is me being optimistic here and it's kind of a new thing, so you can tell me if I'm getting this wrong, but I also know you've never had any trouble telling me to remove my head from my ass in the past."

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I have performed more than one of those kinds of surgeries since we've known each other, Mr. Queen," she agreed with him a little teasingly.

"And am I being overly optimistic in thinking you wouldn't be here if you really didn't want to be, that I couldn't make you do anything you didn't want to, no matter how bull at the gate my behavior might get?"

"No, you couldn't," said Felicity quietly.

"I've always admired that about you," said Oliver honestly. "You don't let me get away with anything. It's as frustrating as hell sometimes but I want you to know that the checks you bring into my life are very important to me." He tilted his head. "_You're_ very important to me, Felicity and I haven't been as clear about that in the past as you've deserved. I wanted you to know that what happened at the cabin meant a lot to me," he said sincerely. Oliver walked up to her and took her hands in his. "The things we talked about, the moments we shared, I took them all in and there was nothing I said or did that I didn't want for us." His face clouded over. "Even if I was on hyper drive at the time and scared the hell out of you." Oliver grimaced. "And minus the homicidal need to protect you and keep you away from every other man within a hundred mile radius. But the rest, it was all me. Everything I said and did, it's what I want for us."

Felicity's expression was pensive. "I know you really believe that, Oliver but—"

"And I'm going to make you believe it too," he interrupted her quickly. Oliver knew Felicity's reservations, he just needed to prove to her they were unfounded. "I get this date, remember? To convince you that I know what I want and what I want is you and if at the end of tonight you still don't think we're a good idea, I'll absolutely respect that and won't push you on the matter anymore, you have my word on it." Of course, Oliver wasn't entirely sure how he was going to manage that but he was hell bent to be true to his promise. He just really hoped it wouldn't come to that. "Okay?"

Felicity drew in an unsteady breath and looked torn. "Yes," she said quietly.

A huge smile touched Oliver's lips at her granting him this chance to make his case. "Good." He glanced over at the table. "We should eat, before our dinner gets cold." Oliver let go of one of her hands but then walked Felicity over to the table, pulling her seat out for her.

Felicity took a seat. "This is so weird," she said unsteadily as Oliver walked around to his seat.

He undid his jacket button and took his seat across from her. "Weird how?"

"I'm on a date with Oliver Queen," said Felicity unevenly. "And it's nothing like I imagined."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" asked Oliver, slightly worried.

"I-I don't know," confessed Felicity.

Oliver gave a little grimace. "Okay, I'll take it. That's better than definitely a bad thing." He frowned. "Wait, or should that be better than a good thing in that scenario? How did you think a date with me would go?" Whatever her answer, Oliver consoled himself with the fact that Felicity had at least considered the idea at some point in the past. He was taking that as a positive.

"Depended on my mood," said Felicity honestly. "But I certainly never pictured it like this."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, for one thing, there was a lot less fish in my versions."

Oliver frowned. "You don't like the fish."

"I _love_ the fish," said Felicity emotionally, looking around herself again. "I want to live her permanently now."

He smiled. "That maybe a bit tricky, what with the crowds of people ending up in your living room every day."

"That would be something to work around," agreed Felicity with a little smile. "But it'd be worth it." She looked up as a huge manta ray drifted casually over the tops of their heads. "The only thing which would make this better is if I could get in there with them and not, you know, drown."

"That reminds me, we have to organize a time for me to start teaching you to swim."

Felicity looked at him sharply. "That isn't going to happen."

"You need to know how to swim," said Oliver firmly. "It's a necessary life skill."

She gave a little snort. "No, it's not. I've made it to twenty-three without it and besides, there is nothing wrong with aggressive floating."

"One, I'm still not even sure what that is but you can demonstrate it for me when I teach you how to swim and two, we live too near water for me to feel comfortable about the fact that if you fell into any of it, that you wouldn't be able to save yourself." His look became pointed. "You need to know how to swim, Felicity. It's important."

"How about I just wear a life jacket?" she said unhappily.

"So, what, your plan is to put on a life jacket every time you come close to water?" asked Oliver skeptically. "That's not very practical. I mean, look at your commute to work. You go over the Munroe Bridge at least twice a day. Are you seriously telling me that you're going to wear a life jacket on your commute to work?"

"Why am I suddenly driving off the Munroe Bridge?" asked Felicity in confusion.

"It could happen, accidents happen and you wouldn't be able to save yourself," said Oliver stubbornly. "I can't walk around knowing that in my head and not do anything about it."

"Okay, fine, I'll go to some swim classes, no biggie," said Felicity hastily.

"There is no need to pay someone. I'll teach you." He smiled at her encouragingly. "It's okay, I'm a really good teacher. I taught Thea how to swim when she was five. We can do it in my pool, it's heated."

"You're not seeing me in a bathing suit, Oliver Queen," she blurted out anxiously.

His smile widened. "You already know my solution to that little problem. Bathing suits are completely optional in my swim classes." Oliver paused briefly. "Not when I was teaching Thea, of course," he followed up quickly. "I just meant when it comes to us, they're optional when it comes to us." Oliver grimaced. "With Thea it would have been just weird."

"So weird," agreed Felicity readily. "And weird for us too. We're not having naked swimming lessons, Oliver." She blushed at her own words.

"Probably just as well," he said easily. "I don't know how well I'd be able to keep my mind on the job if you were naked." Oliver couldn't help his gaze drifting over what he could see of the rest of Felicity's body where she was sitting across from him. His eyelids drooped a little as the blood heated in his veins.

"You're picturing me naked, aren't you?" asked Felicity in horror. "Stop it!"

Oliver blinked and tried to pull back from the image he had in his mind's eye of a naked Felicity in his arms in his swimming pool. He shifted a little uncomfortably in his seat, suddenly conscious of just how tight his pants were. Oliver gave an uneven smile. "Sorry, couldn't help but go there."

"You said this wasn't about sex between us," she said, clearly flustered.

"I said it wasn't _only_ about sex," Oliver corrected her. "Sex is definitely a part of it, very, very definitely a part of it. I want you, Felicity, that's body and soul. I want the whole package."

"What if you open the package and you're disappointed?" she asked unsteadily.

Oliver couldn't believe they were having this conversation. "Not going to happen," he said without hesitation.

"How can know that for sure?" fretted Felicity. "You've been with so many beautiful women—"

"Felicity, you're gorgeous. You already know how I feel about that amazing backside of yours—"

She blushed again and it was all Oliver could do not to push this stupid table between them and show Felicity just how much he wanted her right then. He wanted to know how far that blush went, he wanted to taste the pinkness on her skin and follow where it led. Oliver's hand gripped the edge of table as he willed his wayward urges back under control. "You don't need to worry about the physical side of a relationship with me. I'm very confident we'll have no issue there." He paused, unable to help himself. "Although, if you're really worried about it, I could come over there and put your mind at rest on the subject once and for all." Oliver had meant to throw that out as a little joke to try and put Felicity at ease but even he heard the wisp of hopefulness in his tone.

Felicity's eyes went wide. "Are-aren't you hungry?" she asked unsteadily.

Oliver's held her gaze with an unintentional fierceness. "Starving," he practically growled. _God, but she was driving him crazy._ Oliver had planned this evening with every intention of showing Felicity just how in control of his emotions he was around her, that it was safe to be around him but he was having some very bad thoughts right then that were anything other than in control. Felicity was under his skin and burrowing her way deeper with every minute they spent together. Oliver was almost overwhelmed by the intensity of his feelings for her, the level of desire he had for her which wasn't only about the physical side of things. Every time he thought he had a modicum of control over himself when it came to her, their conversation would drift into these uncharted territories and Oliver was finding himself being completely and utterly honest with her. He could tell Felicity was struggling to work out if it was all truly him or the aftereffects of being poisoned. It was as frustrating as hell but Oliver couldn't really blame her. He had done a pretty significant 180 turn with being open about his feelings towards her. That was bound to confuse any woman. Oliver fought his way back to some kind of control. "But I can wait," he finished off a little unevenly. "Because some things are worth the wait." Oliver smiled at her. "You're worth everything, Felicity, whatever it takes. I'm in this for the long haul." He took a deep breath. "And now we really had better eat otherwise everything will be stone cold."

Felicity gave a little smile, obviously appreciative of the change of subject. She picked up the dome-shaped cloche to reveal the plate of food underneath. Her face lit up. "Crab cakes," she said in delight.

"Extra crunchy," agreed Oliver as he removed his cloche too, revealing the crunchy treats served on a bed of salad. "Along with that green dipping sauce you want to be buried in."

Felicity grinned. "It's perfect." Suddenly she looked worried. "But do you think it's a good idea?"

"Being buried in a green dipping sauce? No, not really. I feel like the health department would have something to say about it."

Felicity rolled her eyes. "No, not that." She gave a little jerk of her head towards the glass window behind her. "You know, we might be eating someone they know."

Oliver's lips twitched. "You mean the crabs?"

Felicity gave a quick look over her shoulder at the assortment of crabs doing their sideways back and forth shufflings on the tank floor behind them. "Are they watching us? I feel like they're judging us."

"They're crabs, Felicity," said Oliver in amusement. "They're not doing anything other than being crabs."

Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I still feel like they're judging me."

"Okay, fine, I'll have your crab cakes," said Oliver teasingly, picking up a fork to skewer himself some.

In a blink of an eye Felicity had picked up her own fork and jabbed it at Oliver's hand. "Back off, mister!"

Oliver drew back his hand which now had fork tine imprints on them but couldn't help himself from laughing. "Seriously? You're going to impale me over crab cakes?"

"_Extra_ _crunchy_ crab cakes," Felicity corrected him, as though that made all the difference. "And it was just a reflex."

"Like the biting thing?" he asked indulgently.

"Hey, you've got a history when it comes to my crab cakes and it's not a good one," said Felicity defensively. "I've clearly developed a 'take no prisoners' instinct when it comes to you and my favorite foods."

"With all the biting and stabbing, I never gave you full credit for just how dangerous you are," said Oliver teasingly.

"I have my moments," said Felicity, still eyeing him warily.

Oliver laughed. "Relax, Felicity. I'm not going to touch your crab cakes unless you offer them to me."

Her eyes narrowed a little and she looked uncertain. "Are we still talking about crab cakes?"

"We're talking about whatever you want to talk about," said Oliver calmly. "You're setting the pace on this thing."

"The last time you said that you accused me of having an affair with Roy," said Felicity wryly. "Handing over control to other people seems to have some side effects when it comes to you, Oliver."

He pulled a face. "Admittedly not my finest hour but I'm working on it. Now, eat your crab cakes."

"Is that you handing over control, telling me what to do?" she teased him. "And I'm off the clock, you're not the boss of me."

Oliver smiled. "That's me not wanting you to have a cold dinner." He picked up his own fork. "And besides, there is more to this date yet to come."

Her eyes widened a little. "More how?"

"You'll see."

"I hate it when you're mysterious," she pouted.

"You won't hate this," he said confidently. "You'll love it."

Felicity wrinkled her nose and filled up her fork with crab cake. "Cocky," she noted dryly.

"No, just a man who listens when you talk," said Oliver easily.

She pulled a face. "Scary thought. I say a lot of stuff."

"Yes, you do," said Oliver happily and he was just waiting for the moment when Felicity was going to openly admit she loved him. When that day came, Oliver knew he was going to be the happiest man in the world and he couldn't wait. Hell, it could even happen tonight. The thought made his smile widen as he followed her lead and started eating, even though he could barely taste the food. All Oliver was really appreciating right then was the woman sitting across from him and he knew he'd never have his fill of her.

**A/N****: And the date continues in the next chapter. How do you think Oliver is doing on the 'perfect first date' front? Personally I'd be impressed if I was Felicity but I'm also compelled by shiny things and things that hang off strings… so yeah, I'm probably not the best judge here. **


	48. Chapter 48

**A/N****: Well, I have finished this story and am currently just penning (fingering?) the ending. Hmm… that sounds very wrong. Let's just pretend I'm writing this with a pen rather than typing it with my fingers. I think we'll sleep better at night that way. Anyways, as I said, finished with the 50 chapters and am now just halfway through the epilogue that will lead us into the next story… which I'm really struggling to find a title for. At this rate I'm just going to be calling it 'Trevor' and being done with it. I don't know who Trevor is, I don't plan to have a Trevor in the story but I'm really stumped for a name, which isn't like me. Just thinking aloud now, always dangerous. **

**One of my guest reviewers asked if Bunny was inspired by a character in 'The Blacklist' – I can say a no to that one because I've never watched the show. But maybe I should if there is a Bunny-like character wandering around being fabulous. Lol We do meet up with Briggle in the first part of this chapter and then it's on to Oliver sweeping Felicity off her feet. That dates going well so far, don't you think? What are the odds that something terrible is going to happen? Wow, that high, huh? Between the show and me, we've really got you twitchy, haven't we? Oh well, guess you'll just have to read on to find out if I'd really do that to you… you know… again. **

**So, on with the show, as the saying goes… :D **

**CHAPTER FORTY EIGHT**

Diggle looked up at the three story office building in one of the backstreets in the middle of the Glades and pursed his lips. "Steinman's Office Supplies? That's where the cock fight is being held?"

"Underneath it," Bunny corrected him. "There are old waterway tunnels down there, and one of the large reservoirs is directly beneath this building. It's kind of like a big, empty swimming pool down there. That's where the fighting happens."

"Confined space." Diggle's lips tightened. "Not great. We need to do an extraction of Ross and have a little conversation with him."

"He'll be heavily guarded by some of the most unattractive men you'll ever have the misfortune to meet," said Bunny disapprovingly. "Why would you hire ugly when you could hire pretty? It makes no sense."

"Maybe they're just good at their jobs?" offered up Roy. "Looks aren't everything."

"It's a buyer's market when it comes to employing thugs, heavy men and generalized agents of skullduggery," said Bunny dismissively. "There is no reason why you can't have competency and cuteness." He smiled charmingly at them. "Which I'm famous for and why no one will have a problem you two being my bodyguards du jour." Bunny cocked his head. "Or rather du noir, I suppose, as it is night." He waggled a finger between them. "So much pretty. I feel like there should be a law against it."

"Bunny," said Diggle firmly, "I need you to concentrate now."

"I'm all yours, brown bear," said Bunny without hesitation. "Do to me what you will… and don't worry about being gentle. God didn't give me these child-bearing hips for no reason."

Diggle frowned, needing the older man to take this more seriously. They were going into a dangerous, uncontrolled situation and anything could happen. "Just get us in, we'll handle the rest."

"Getting to the Mariner won't be easy. He's deeply suspicious of anyone he doesn't know. I should introduce you," said Bunny blithely. "Suggest we talk about business away from the crowd. We lure him away and then you two can do what needs to be done."

"And you're not worried about what that might be?" asked Roy abruptly.

Bunny waved a hand at him. "Not particularly. I'm assuming you're not going to be offering him the key to the city and seeing as the last people who've come in contact with you have all ended up dead—"

"Coates and that guard were accidents," said Roy quickly. "Accidents that weren't my fault."

"Of course, kitten. I'm just saying no one is going to cry buckets of tears if Mr. Ross and his god-awful white shoes were to meet their maker tonight."

"We're not assassins," said Diggle sharply. "No one is going to die tonight."

"All I'm saying if that does happen, there won't be any judgment from me." He drew in a deep breath. "Now, give me a moment to get into character here." Bunny closed his eyes and gave a few flaps of his arms, breathing deeply.

"You don't need to get into character," said Diggle in irritation. "You're playing you."

Bunny opened his eyes and gave a short shake of his head. "No, I'm playing me who was accosted by two gorgeous but dangerous men and forced into doing their bidding. There's a whole backstory for my character."

"Backstory?" repeated Diggle in disbelief.

"Yes, I was in a bar, my car had broken down and I was waiting for a little man from a local garage to assist me when suddenly you two appeared." Bunny nodded his head. "You'd been tracking me for days, watching my every move—"

Diggle glanced over at Roy who was looking at Bunny with an expression somewhere between disbelief and intrigue.

"And then you corner me, forcing me to do your will when you brandish your enormous black gun at me," said Bunny, fluttering his eyes up at Diggle suggestively.

Roy gave a snort of laughter which earned him a disapproving look from Diggle. Roy shrugged. "What? It's funny when he does it to other people."

Diggle rolled his eyes but Bunny wasn't finished yet.

"I had no choice but to do as I was told, or suffer at the hands of what I could assume would be a demanding yet oddly gentle capturers."

Diggle sighed heavily. "If we can pull you away from your schoolboy fantasies for one minute—"

"Never," vowed Bunny emphatically.

"This is dangerous. Your head needs to be in the game and you need to do exactly what I tell you, when I tell you, no questions asked. Got it?"

"I love it when you get all demanding and serious," sighed Bunny. "It brings out the firmness of your thighs." He leaned a little closer, a knowing smile on his face. "Which are magnificent, by the way. I'd like to ride them like they were the last stagecoach out of town."

Roy gave another snort of laughter and gained a dark look from Diggle for his troubles.

"And you, my little kitten, I'd have for dessert, because I always like to end a fine meal with something sweet lingering on my tongue," said Bunny, winking at him.

"Eww… no," said Roy hastily, all amusement gone. "Go back to sexually harassing the big guy, that was funny and the most action he's probably gotten in decades."

"You don't know me," said Diggle flatly. "You don't know what I've got going on and more importantly, why are we even talking about this? We're about to go into a loaded situation which could go off in our faces at any minute—"

Bunny stuck up his hands with both sets of fingers crossed. "Oh God, that's my fondest hope for tonight. A girl can but dream."

"Alright, Mr. Double Entendre, that's enough from you for tonight. Just get us in, make the introductions and leave the rest to us, got it?"

"Yes, brown bear," said Bunny obediently, looking up at him adoringly, "I'm yours to command. Do with me what you will… and don't forget about the flexible thing because that is all true because that is not just me blowing my own horn… which I can do, by the way, because of the whole flexibility thing."

Roy's eyes went wide. "Seriously? You can do that?"

Diggle gave a grunt. "You can't possibly want the man to answer that, Harper."

"Oh, okay, probably not. Just, you know, wow, if it's true."

"It's true," said Bunny breezily. "I can show you right now if you want." His hands went to his belt buckle.

"Pants on," said Diggle sharply. "Get us in, we'll get you out. Nothing more, nothing less, do we understand each other?"

"On _so_ many levels, BB," said Bunny happily. "Now then, you'll pseudonyms, obviously I can't call you by your real names." He pursed his lips and looked thoughtful. "How about Mr. Grey and Mr. Pink?"

Roy scowled. "I'd better not be Mr. Pink."

"Pink would be a fabulous color on you, kitten," Bunny cajoled him.

"Pick another color," said Roy flatly.

"How about cerulean?"

Roy hesitated. "What's that?"

"It's a kind of blue."

"Oh, yeah, okay, I can be that."

"Are you done?" asked Diggle impatiently. "It doesn't matter what he calls us as long as he doesn't use our real names."

"Says the guy who gets to be the cool grey color," said Roy flatly.

Diggle shook his head and then looked between Roy and Bunny. "Stay with Bunny, get him out if this all goes downhill."

Roy gave a short nod of his head. "Got it."

"Let's go." Diggle went to cross the street but Bunny stalled him.

"Let me just find my center." Bunny closed his eyes and went back to waving his arms around while Diggle and Roy exchanged resigned looks.

_Oh yeah, this was not going to go well. _

#

Oliver watched Felicity swallow her last mouthful of dinner, even as she was still watching all the fish swimming their way around above their heads. "I think I made a strategic mistake bringing you here," he noted in amusement. "You're more interested in the fish than me."

Felicity quickly put her attention back on him, looking a little sheepish. "Sorry, but it's amazing being here with no one else and just being with the fish. It really is like I'm a mermaid… without the pruney skin to go with being underwater for a long time."

"Do I get to be your Aquaman in this scenario?" he asked indulgently.

"Well, you can't breathe underwater or communicate with the fish," noted Felicity teasingly, "but you'll do until the real one comes along."

"Second choice," said Oliver and gave a little mocking air pump with his fist. "Yay me."

Felicity laughed. "Like you've ever been second choice in your life, Oliver Queen. You wouldn't know what it's like."

"I know I'm lucky that this fish guy doesn't really exist otherwise I think I'd be in real trouble," said Oliver wryly.

"We don't know my Aquaman doesn't exist," she countered.

"I thought we agreed you weren't going to call him _my_ Aquaman," said Oliver flatly.

"And I thought we agreed it's ridiculous for you to be jealous of someone you don't even think exists," she said, sending him a pointed look. "That's crazy Oliver's way of thinking."

"I don't think any man who is love with a woman wants said woman to entertain romantic thoughts about any other man than him, imaginary or not," said Oliver dryly. "That's not a sign of insanity. Kind of the opposite in fact."

"But over someone you think is imaginary?"

Oliver leaned over the table towards her, not breaking eye contact. "I don't want you to like anyone more than me, ever. Not crazy, just being honest. Don't you want the same thing from me?"

Felicity looked flustered. "I-ah-I've never thought about it."

"I don't need a question after that to know it's a lie."

Felicity frowned at him. "How's that ego of yours? Still pretty healthy, I see. Like every woman you meet has to fall automatically in love with you."

"I don't care about every other woman, I only care about you," said Oliver determinedly. "Felicity, I want you to want me to only want you."

"That's a lot of wanting," said Felicity unevenly.

Oliver pulled a face. "I know, but you know what I mean, right? You're the sort of girl who wants forever from a man and more than that, deserves it. I want to be that man who gives that to you, even if he doesn't really deserve it himself."

Felicity's pretty face clouded over. "Why wouldn't you deserve a happily ever after, Oliver?"

His jaw hardened. "You know why," he said quietly. "I've done a lot of bad things, Felicity. Things I had to do to survive, decisions I've made which still keep me awake at night. I've taken a lot of people's lives. You're sitting here with what basically amounts to a serial killer." Oliver couldn't believe he'd actually said those words aloud, not sure what had compelled him to lay out such an ugly truth to a woman he was trying to get to consider a life with him. He looked at Felicity with real fear, searching her face for any sign of revulsion or rejection and if either where there, Oliver couldn't blame her but it would break his heart. "I've done a lot of bad things in my past, Felicity," he said raggedly. Oliver needed Felicity to fully understand what she was getting herself into. He wished it was different but it just wasn't.

Felicity's expression was somber, tone soft when she replied. "The chief beauty about time is that you cannot waste it in advance. The next year, the next day, the next hour are lying ready for you, as perfect, as unspoiled, as if you had never wasted or misapplied a single moment in all your life. You can turn over a new leaf every hour if you choose."

Oliver's eyes went wide at her beautiful words and the heartbreakingly hopeful sentiment behind them. "Felicity," he said hoarsely, feeling overwhelmed in that moment.

"Arnold Bennett said that," she said a little unsteadily. "He's a British novelist. I read that at a time in my life when I'd just made a really big mistake I didn't think I could get past and it just kind of stuck with me." Felicity reached out a hand and took his. "Oliver, your past doesn't have to completely inform your present. What happened to you, the things you did to survive, they're a part of you but they don't have to define you. You can choose the man you want to be." She gave a little smile. "And you're doing that, every day, as the Arrow and as Oliver Queen. You're making a difference. You're taking all that ugliness you suffered through and turning it into something life affirming. You're using your strength to protect those who have none and at a huge personal cost. There is nothing about that you shouldn't be proud of." She gave him an uneven smile. "The way I'm proud of you."

Oliver's heart swelled at Felicity's words. It meant so much for her to say something like that to him. It made all the suffering and pain just fade away and there was only a determined hope for the future left in their stead. Oliver lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the soft skin on the back of her hand, closing his eyes. He laid his cheek against her hand, not letting her go just yet. "You always do this," said Oliver huskily.

"Do what?" asked Felicity unsteadily.

"Make me feel."

"Feel what?"

Oliver opened his eyes and lifted his head, holding her gaze unflinchingly. "Hope… a belief in a better tomorrow… like there is a point to all of this." A lop-sided smile touched his lips. "Like I'm more than the mistakes of my past."

"That's because you are, Oliver," said Felicity sincerely. "We all are. You're not a bad person. You're a person who's had bad things happen to them and survived them the best way you knew how. I could always see that about you. I could always see the man you were meant to be inside the man who came back from that island. Why else would I have stayed as long as I have?"

Oliver felt like he'd taken some new, powerful drug to hear Felicity say she'd always seen the good in him. It was particularly intoxicating to know that when Oliver knew he hadn't been seeing any in himself at the time. He pulled a face. "A poorly developed survival instinct?" he offered up, only half joking.

"Well, sure, there is that too," said Felicity teasingly. "Obviously."

He smiled. "Obviously." Oliver found himself staring at Felicity and unable to look away. She was just so beautiful and real and funny and sexy and Oliver knew he could sit there all night and just reel off adjectives to describe the woman sitting across for him. "I have something for you," he said huskily.

Felicity looked suddenly nervous again. "You-you do?"

"The rest of your surprise." Oliver stood up. "Stay there, I'll be right back." He headed off towards a nearby hallway where he'd stashed the surprise. Oliver picked up the large, brightly wrapped box which was as big as he was, complete with a bow, and then carried it back to the table where Felicity was waiting. He laid the present down by the table, enjoying the look of amazement of Felicity's face.

"Is that for me?" she squeaked.

"Well, it is your birthday, even though it's belated, and it's traditional for the birthday girl to open at least one present, right?"

Felicity looked at him with eyes as wide as saucers. "It's enormous."

"I wanted to get you something you'd really love."

She sucked in an unsteady breath. "I'm warning you now, if there is a cow inside there, I'm going to scream the place down and I may or may not pee myself just a little." Felicity screwed up her face. "Who am I kidding? I'm totally going to tinkle town if there is a cow in there."

Oliver laughed. "No, it's not a cow. I don't think you're allowed to put cows in boxes and besides, you don't have room at your place for a cow."

"I'd make room for Penelope," said Felicity emotionally.

He gave a crooked smile. "Well, sorry, it's not a cow."

"That's okay," said Felicity unevenly. "I get that it was a pretty low probability. Just lost my head there for a moment."

"Hopefully you'll find out the actual gift not too much of a disappointment," said Oliver ruefully. Felicity still hadn't given up her dreams of Penelope. That was so her, that ability to never give up on something she believed in, no matter how hopeless it might seem.

"Can-can I open it now or do I have to wait?" asked Felicity unsteadily.

"Is waiting really an option?" asked Oliver skeptically, seeing the way she was eyeing the box off like a starving tiger about to pounce on the first antelope he'd seen in weeks.

"No," said Felicity without hesitation.

"What if I'd said yes, you had to wait?" asked Oliver in amusement. "What would you have done then?"

"I would have waited until you turned your back on me, hit you over the head with a chair, opened the present and when you came to, I would have blamed it all on a pack of marauding raccoons breaking into the aquarium on a pillaging spree that I had no way of stopping."

"Wow," said Oliver, "you came up with that plan really quickly. I don't know whether to be impressed or concerned."

"Let me open this present and you'll never have to find out."

"I am genuinely scared to stop you now." Oliver's lips twitched. "Have at it but I should warn you, I used extra tape to slow you down—"

Felicity launched herself at the present while he was still talking and tore off the wrapping paper he'd painstakingly wrapped the box in. She ripped the paper from the box in less than three seconds.

"—which apparently had no affect at all," said Oliver in amusement. He walked over to the table and picked up a butter knife. "Here, you may need this to get into the box."

Felicity snorted and ignored the offered knife. "Amateurs need utensils and I'm no amateur."

"I can see that," said Oliver in admiration as Felicity made short work of the box, only to find another brightly wrapped present inside.

She looked up at him. "There's another present inside."

"Hmm," said Oliver, feigning surprise, "so there is. Guess you'll have to unwrap that one too."

A huge, gleeful grin split Felicity's face. "Oliver," she said, voice bubbling over with excitement.

"You'd better get a wriggle on," he suggested, loving seeing the happy excitement on her face. "That present isn't going to unwrap itself."

Felicity made a gurgling sound of pure pleasure and then she was attacking the next present with a fervor that had to be seen to be believed. Oliver watched her decimate the next boxed present, entranced. The noise Felicity made when she found yet another, smaller wrapped present inside had Oliver laughing out loud. He couldn't remember having this much fun on a date ever before in his life. The woman currently tearing wrapping paper off with gay abandon had him completely enthralled and Oliver felt himself fall even more under Felicity's spell, never wanting to leave her side again…

**A/N****: Now then, I definitely wouldn't call knowing what Oliver got Felicity for her birthday a cliff hanger by any stretch of the imagination but I hope you're all having fun on the Olicity date so far and can wait 24hrs to find out what it is. :D **


	49. Chapter 49

**A/N****: Can't talk, starving, got to eat, read chapter, talk when tummy is full. **

**CHAPTER FORTY NINE**

Felicity was actually a little out of breath by the time she got to the final present. By now she was sitting on the floor, completely uncaring of her dress or how it might look to Oliver. She was on overdrive at having to open so many presents all at once. So far there had been eight other progressively smaller boxes that she'd had to tear her way through and now she was at a box the size of about two shoe boxes. Around her a mountain of wrapping paper was piled up with ripped apart cardboard boxes as she cradled this latest box on her lap. "Is this it?" she asked breathlessly. "Is this the last one?"

Oliver was crouched down beside her, a large smile on his face. "Only one way to find out."

Felicity sucked in an unsteady breath and tried to calm down. She knew she was behaving like an excitable child but she couldn't help it and the fact that Oliver had been the one to come up with this wonderful treat for her was nearly Felicity's undoing. It almost didn't matter what was in the box ultimately, this whole thing had been her present because he'd remembered her love of unwrapping things. With slightly trembling hands Felicity tore off the wrapping around the latest box and carelessly threw if on the pile of wrapping paper which was actually taller than she was as she sat there on the floor. This time the box inside was a beautiful wooden one with intricate inlays of mother of pearl. She looked up at Oliver. "It's beautiful," she breathed.

"Your present is inside," he prompted her. "The box isn't your gift… well, not all of it, anyways."

Felicity couldn't even begin to guess what might be inside the box as she carefully opened up the lid. She blinked at what she found inside, hardly able to believe what she was seeing. The box contain at least thirty small bottles of different shampoos, conditioners, body washes and perfume. All like the ones you'd find in any high quality hotel. Felicity made a little squeaking noise.

"Is that a happy sound?" asked Oliver, tilting his head and looking at her intently.

"Can't talk," said Felicity in a strangled voice, "endorphin overload… can't breathe." She fanned her flushed face with her hand at the sight of all those perfect little bottles in all their adorable glory.

Oliver grinned. "So, you like it then?"

"This is the best birthday present I've ever gotten," said Felicity, blinking back emotional tears.

"Wow, I really hope that isn't true," said Oliver in vague amusement. "It's only bottles of hair products."

"No, they're tiny and perfect and amazing," she corrected him swiftly. "I love this, Oliver, I really, really do." Felicity ran her hand over the tops of the little bottles, unable to take her eyes off them. "Where did you get all of these?"

"I made a few phone calls to some hotels and they were happy to help me out." He smiled. "Wait, I have one more thing for you."

"Really?" asked Felicity unsteadily. "Because I think my happiness is on overload. I may explode if you do one more sweet thing for me."

Oliver grinned. "I'll take my chances." He straightened up and hurried over to the same corridor he'd hidden the present away in and bent down over a cardboard box. Inside was a beautifully decorated little cake, big enough for two people and covered in pink and white frosting. Also in the box was a single birthday candle which he now put in the middle of the cake and lit with a lighter from his coat jacket. Oliver stood up with the cake on a little plate and walked back to Felicity, a protective hand up to the flame so as not to blow it out before she had a chance to.

"Cake!" exclaimed Felicity in delight when she saw him coming.

Oliver smiled to hear the excitement in her voice. "Someone once told me it's not a birthday party without cake." He sat down beside her, pulling up his pants legs so he could sit cross legged across from her. Oliver held out the cake to her and smiled warmly. "I'll spare you my singing but I believe the birthday girl gets a wish." He arched a playful eyebrow at her. "Make it a good one."

"I don't know what else to wish for," said Felicity, looking overwhelmed. "You've pretty much nailed the whole birthday experience." She looked down at the box of small bottles on her lap. "I can't believe you remembered my hotel toiletries thing," said Felicity in awe.

"I told you, Felicity, I remember everything that happened when I was gassed." A serious expression suddenly came over Oliver's face and he took a deep breath, setting down the birthday cake with its single flickering flame to one side for a minute. "We haven't really talked about all the things that happened between us during that time."

"We don't have to," said Felicity hastily. "It was a crazy time." She couldn't help but blush, remembering the way she'd responded to his kisses, how close they'd come to it being more than just kisses. Felicity still worried about what Oliver thought of her for that.

"It was and I know I put you in a really difficult situation at times and I'm truly sorry for that," said Oliver unhappily.

"Oliver, you can't keep apologizing for something you had no control over," said Felicity unevenly. "You weren't yourself."

Oliver looked to be choosing his words very carefully. "I wasn't," he agreed, "but when I look back on that time, in amongst all the crazy, there was a version of me that I actually really liked."

Felicity blinked in surprise. "There was?"

He gave a small smile. "I liked the Oliver who was finally being honest about his feelings about you. I liked the guy who knew what he wanted and wasn't afraid or all caught up in his head to say what that was." Oliver's voice became husky. "_Who_ that was." He grimaced. "I hated the aggression I showed but the rest of it, the rest of it I don't regret or see as a mistake. I loved the conversations we had and the way you made me feel—"

"But how can you know those feelings were really real?" asked Felicity painfully. "How can you be so sure that it wasn't just the XR-320 making you fixate on me and making you think you were in love with me?"

"They were real, Felicity and the reason I know that is because the only difference between my feelings for you before and after the exposure to that gas was how willing I was to be honest about them. All the gas did to me was take away my self-censorship when it comes to you." He wrinkled his nose. "And gave me a couple of anti-social tendencies but they didn't enhance anything when it came to my feelings for you. They were already there but I always came up with a reason to put them to one side." Oliver shook his head at her. "And I don't want to do that anymore. I'm finally allowing myself to see a life for myself outside of being the Arrow and the only person I can see with me in that life is you, Felicity. You're who I want, the woman I love and need by my side. I'm done pretending anything else is true. I want us to have a life together."

Felicity stared at Oliver's sincere face, overcome by his words. He really meant them, she could tell but it was all so much to take in. "You-you really want me?" she asked unsteadily. "You want a relationship?"

"Yes," said Oliver without hesitation.

Felicity swallowed hard, her heart beating so loudly in her chest that it was causing the blood to roar in her ears. Oliver was being honest with her and she could only be the same with him. "I'm can't be your next Laurel," she said emotionally. "I can't be the next girl you promise the world to and then don't deliver. There is more at stake here than just you and me, Oliver. There is the whole Arrow thing. I love being a part of making a difference in the world and if we do this thing and then you just suddenly turn around one day and tell me it's over because it's too dangerous or you can't be Oliver and the Arrow or whatever else you come up with to torture yourself and deny any kind of real happiness in your life, because you don't think you deserve it, well, I'm not going to be okay with that. I'm not going to get over it and be able to work with you day in and day out. We do this, Oliver, and we risk everything and I mean _everything_. For me, this is all or nothing and there is no in between." Felicity sucked in a shaky breath after that emotional outburst. "Can you really say that you're in that place where you know you can give me all of you without second guessing that choice and breaking us, breaking what we already have?"

Oliver grabbed her hand. "Felicity, listen to me," he said urgently. "I get it, okay? You have every reason to doubt me knowing my own mind when it comes to love, _every_ reason. Hell, I was a nightmare when it came to relationships before the XR-320. On my past history alone, with Laurel, with Sara, with every woman I've ever been with, I've gotten it wrong, screwed it up and hurt them. If you're asking me to predict the future to say we'll always be together, no matter what. I can't. No one can. I don't know what's around the corner, I don't know the challenges that lay ahead." Oliver's sincerity was written all over his face. "I only know that when those challenges come, I want to face them with you," he said softly. "I've been alone for so long, Felicity, even before the island. I've been alone my whole life and I only truly realized that when I met you and for the longest time I couldn't work out what I was feeling but now I finally do."

Oliver's hand tightened on her arm. "I'm not alone when I'm with you," he said with quiet amazement. "I know what it feels to have someone truly by my side, to see all of me, not just my name or my history or even my actions. You just see me, who I am underneath all of the other crap, the good and the bad stuff, it's all stripped away and it's just me. I get to be myself with you, a me I barely even know or understand but I like him, Felicity." He gave a tentative lopsided smile. "I like that Oliver and I want to know him better and I want others to see him too and that's only possible if I'm with you." Oliver squeezed his eyes closed and grimaced. "Which sounds like I'm just using you to make myself feel good." He opened his eyes again, gaze almost fierce. "Which isn't the way it is, I promise you, Felicity. We fit. I don't know why or how but we just do." Oliver's breathing was a little ragged. "Tell me you can feel it too, even just a little bit, the way we just-we just—"

"Belong," she finished off unsteadily.

Oliver nodded his head eagerly. "Yes, we belong to each other, that's it exactly." He pressed his advantage, cupping her face. "I know you have your doubts about my ability to follow through on my words, Felicity and I don't blame you for that. I know what's at stake and I'm scared too but I'm more scared to do nothing and risk losing you. I can't just have pieces of you anymore, Felicity. I said at the beginning of tonight, I want it all and those aren't just words and I'll prove that to you." He stroked her cheek with his thumb. "We can go as slowly as you need to feel safe about that."

"What if you get bored with me?" she whispered, expression stricken.

Oliver actually laughed out loud at that. "That can't be a serious question."

Felicity pouted. "Well, it is."

"Felicity," he said in amazement, "it's an impossibility to be bored by you. I never know what you're going to do or say next. You surprise me ten times a day and then some. You will never, ever be boring, it's just not in you." Oliver made a face. "If anyone should be worried about being boring it's me."

"You, seriously?" said Felicity in disbelief. "The billionaire, ex-shipwrecked, ex-playboy, current leather-clad vigilante of Starling City is worried about being boring?"

"You said I was predictable," he countered, "and you're right I am. I'm big on the brooding and being serious and just generally being a glass half-empty kinda guy." Oliver gave a self-deprecating grunt. "Tell me that doesn't get old real quick."

"Some of those things are true… okay, all of them are true but that's not all you are all the time. There is more to you then you give yourself credit for, Oliver."

"I'm beginning to see that," he said quickly, "and the reason I'm seeing that is because of you, Felicity. Tell me where we go from here," said Oliver intently. "Tell me what you need from me to make this, to make us happen."

Felicity ran her tongue along her bottom lip, moistening it as she thought about that question seriously. "You did a really big about face when it comes to what you want from me, for our relationship, Oliver and you did it over a short period and under a lot of physical trauma," said Felicity slowly. "I just need to reassure myself I'm not taking advantage of you." She grimaced. "You know, again."

He looked at her blankly. "What do you mean again?"

"I mean with all the kissing and-and stuff we did when you were poisoned," Felicity blushed and found it hard to look at him. "I-I totally took advantage of you."

"If anyone took advantage it was me," insisted Oliver. "I've been freaking out thinking I'd basically sexually assaulted you and thinking you'd hate me for it or not feel safe around me anymore." He leaned towards her. "Felicity, I loved all the physical stuff that happened between us but when the fog cleared in my brain I suddenly realized that I'd forced you into a really difficult situation – make out with me or my heart will explode – and you only returned my kisses and everything else because you were being kind and not because you wanted them. I've been driving myself crazy trying to reconcile the fact that what was this amazing, romantic and sexy thing for me was probably a complete nightmare for you." He swallowed hard and looked very vulnerable. "And I hate the thought of that."

"You thought I was being kind?" asked Felicity in disbelief. "Being kind is giving your seat up to a pregnant woman on a bus, not shoving your tongue down a gorgeous guy's throat." She blushed at her own words. "But you're right about the nightmare thing, it absolutely was."

Oliver's face clouded over. "Felicity," he said painfully.

"No, no, not like that," she hastily. "I mean it was a nightmare for me because I was kissing a man who said he was in love with me but really wasn't and it was almost impossible to remember that." Felicity wrinkled her nose. "You were very convincing but it wasn't right because you were drugged and disorientated and didn't know what you were saying or doing while I was meant to be the one doing the right thing."

"Only I did know what I was saying," he countered huskily, looking relieved at her explanation. "I still do. I love you, Felicity. I want a life with you." When she still hesitated he continued on. "From the first moment we met, you believed in me, even when I gave you no reason to. You said you didn't know why you should trust me but that you did." Oliver leant over so he could press his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. "Please, Felicity, believe in me about this, even if everything I've said and done to this point makes me a bad bet, take that gamble anyway." Oliver opened his eyes and pulled back ever so slightly, so that he could look her directly in the eye. "Be crazy and optimistic and hopeful with me even though it's pretty much guaranteed that I'm going to be an ass face at some point in the future, most probably more than once. Just believe in me this one last time and I swear to you, you won't regret it."

"Oliver," she choked out, feeling tears sting her eyes. It was the most beautiful thing a man had ever asked of her and Felicity knew that there was only one answer she could give him. She drew in an unsteady breath, trying to get her choked vocal cords to work. "Yes," Felicity managed to say, blinking back tears.

Oliver's eyes went wide. "Yes?" he asked with aching hopefulness.

"Oliver," Felicity groaned, knowing if this didn't work out she was going to shatter into a thousand pieces but unable to help herself, "yes. I want this. I-I want you." Her honesty was rewarded with Oliver making a low, guttural sound and pressing a desperate kiss to her lips. Felicity couldn't help but return it as he took her face in his hands, burying his fingers in her hair and deepening the kiss. She clutched at his arms, feeling her world tilt at the aching tenderness of Oliver's kisses.

"Tell me you love me." Oliver groaned his ragged plea against her lips before returning to delivering those mind blowing kisses.

Felicity knew that as soon as she said those words out loud to him there was no going back for her, ever. It would mean that she'd given up trying to protect her heart in any way, shape or form and that her whole world would be at Oliver's mercy. Somehow Felicity found the strength to break away from those mind altering kisses. "I-I think we should take this slowly," she panted. "Be sure." Felicity was already sure but Oliver was still a wild card to her. She'd seen him flip on Laurel before, the supposed love of his life and even though he'd convinced himself it was for noble reasons, Felicity knew the pain his about face had caused both of them was very real and had almost ended the chance of any kind of relationship between them. Felicity wasn't prepared to risk that. She had to be sure.

"Slow, yes," said Oliver hoarsely. "I can do that."

"I think we should wait a little while before… before… umm… you know…" Felicity felt herself blushing again. She wanted Oliver so much right then but Felicity knew that once she gave her body to him, it was once again something she wouldn't be able to come back from.

"I told you, Felicity," said Oliver urgently, "I want you to feel comfortable about us. I can wait because you're worth it. You're worth anything." He hesitated briefly. "Out of interest, just how long do you think you might need?" Oliver gave that adorable crooked smile of his. "Just so I can pace myself here."

Felicity wrinkled her nose, uncertain because it was mainly for Oliver to be certain he was clear of any aftereffects of the gas and for Felicity to be sure he wasn't going to start overthinking them and think better of the kind of risk a relationship between them would bring and want out. "I don't know, a month maybe? Just to be really sure about the toxin and everything."

"Fine," said Oliver easily. "It's already been three weeks since I had the antidote, I can do another week, no problem."

"I was thinking we should start from when I got back to town, because that was when you started to, you know—" Felicity waved a vague had at him, "this."

Oliver's face fell. "But-but that wasn't even a week ago," he said unevenly. "That'd mean we'd be waiting over three weeks."

"Just to be safe. That's okay, isn't it?"

Oliver looked a little worried. "But we can still date in this time, right? You're not saying we don't have any kind of contact outside of work and the Arrow stuff."

It still blew her mind to think of her and Oliver dating. _Was this really happening and not some kind of fevered dream she never wanted to wake up from?_ "Yes, we can go on dates," said Felicity unsteadily.

"Thank God," said Oliver emotionally. "I know I talk a big game but I really don't think I could have lasted three weeks without being able to do this—" He stole another kiss from her. "Or this." Oliver kissed her neck, peppering little kisses along the delicate flesh. He lifted his head and gave her a sexy smile, eyes full of promise. "I really would have been a basket case."

Felicity felt her own mental health hanging by a thread after those kisses as she blinked a little groggily at him.

"Hey, I've got an idea. How about we say we go on ten dates rather than the three week thing?" Oliver suggested, lips brushing against her skin before he lifted his head to look at her. "That should be enough to prove to you all of your fears about me are unfounded. What do you say?"

"Twenty dates," she countered.

"Twenty?" squawked Oliver. "You do realize that we're still going to be dating after we have sex, right?"

"You said I could set the pace of this thing," she challenged him.

Oliver gave a strangled groan. "I know. What was I thinking? I'm an idiot."

Felicity couldn't help but laugh at how frustrated he sounded. "If everything you're saying is true—"

"It is," said Oliver swiftly.

"Then we have the rest of our lives," said Felicity, amazed about the words coming out of her own mouth. "What's twenty dates or even three weeks for that matter?"

"And I definitely get to still kiss you and tell you how gorgeous you are in the interim, right?"

"I guess, if you have to," said Felicity, feigning reluctance.

"Oh, I have to," said Oliver with great certainty. "It's practically a biological imperative for me at this point." He cocked his head. "How about this – three weeks or twenty date – whichever comes first and then you'll consider being naked in my bed and letting me do very bad things to you over and over again and prove to you how good we are together."

Felicity felt her whole face flush bright red at Oliver's request even as coursing blood in her veins heated her entire body.

"Don't do that," Oliver groaned in protest. "God but your blushing is so sexy."

"I-I can't help it," said Felicity unsteadily.

"How am I meant to keep my side of the bargain if you keep making yourself so utterly irresistible?" Oliver slowly shook his head at her, gaze drifting to her lips. "You're going to be my undoing, Felicity Smoak." He closed the small distance between them and pressed a lingering kiss to her lips. "You're already my savior."

Oliver brushed his lips back and forth over hers, gently tasting her and weaving a spell Felicity was quickly being overcome by. She put a hand to his chest, feeling the way his heart was beating ten to the dozen against her palm and marveling at the knowledge she was the reason why. Oliver's tongue ran along her bottom lip and Felicity instantly parted them, granting him access. Could you become addicted to the taste of someone? With Oliver it felt completely possible. He was leaning forward now, taking the box of hotel toiletries out of her lap and moving it carelessly to one side while not breaking their kiss. Oliver's arm slipped around her waist and then Felicity felt him lowering her to the ground and covering her body with his.

Felicity didn't even care that they were making out on the concrete floor, the only thing which registered with her was the way Oliver was fitting his hard body into her soft curves. It felt amazingly good and Oliver seemed to feel the same way, his kisses becoming a little more demanding and bringing more of his weight to bear against her. Felicity wrapped her arms around Oliver's neck, encouraging him even closer. So much for their agreement to take things slowly. It was going to take some kind of miracle for Felicity to find the willpower to stop Oliver and his ardent advances now. Suddenly Felicity felt a hotness against her arm, followed quickly by the smell of smoke. Oliver chose that moment to break their kiss and start nuzzling at her neck, nipping at her ear. Felicity gave a little shudder at the teasing but turned her head at the same time, to see why her arm was getting so hot. Her eyes went wide at the sight that met her arousal-soaked gaze. "Hot… fire…" she managed to choke out, caught between her own arousal and what she was looking at.

"I know," groaned Oliver against her neck. "I'm on fire too."

Felicity tensed underneath him as the situation beside them became more pressing. "No, Oliver, fire, real fire," she said, voice rising with a little panic.

Oliver finally lifted his head and blinked blearily over to where Felicity was looking. He immediately tensed at seeing all that wrapping paper caught alight and burning quite significantly. Oliver leapt up off of her and quickly shrugged out of his jacket, using it to beat out the flames before it could spread any further. Felicity scrambled to her knees and out of the way as Oliver made short work of the fire, leaving only a smoking, ash-covered pile in its wake.

Oliver quickly turned around and looked at her. "Are you okay?" he asked urgently.

"Yes, I'm fine." She wrinkled her nose. "I guess I really should have made a wish and blown out that candle." Neither one of them had noticed the proximity of Felicity's birthday cake with its still lit candle to all that paper. They'd been too wrapped up in each other.

"That fire was big enough for both of us to make a wish." He gave her a lopsided smile. "I know what I'm wishing for."

Felicity's lips twitched, seeing the impish look in his eyes. "World peace?" she offered up innocently.

Oliver grinned. "Not exactly."

Felicity shook her head and looked at the smoking remains of all of that paper. "How did you not smell that burning, Mr. Survival Guy?" she asked in amazement.

"I struggle to smell anything else when I'm near you," conceded Oliver. "Particularly when you're…" He made a vague hand gesture. "You know… ahh… happy to see me."

"What?" squeaked Felicity, blushing violently. "You can smell… you can smell… that?" She was mortified to think Oliver could pick up on her arousal in that way.

"Don't get weirded out," he said hastily. "It's awesome, intoxicating even." Oliver looked back at the still smoldering paper and absently scratched his chest. "Although losing all sense of my environment when I'm touching you is possibly something I should worry about at some later date, you know, re: keeping you safe and all." He looked back at her and smiled. "But not tonight. Tonight I'm too happy to worry." Oliver knelt back down where Felicity was still kneeling on the ground. He cupped her face with a hand that smelt of smoke. "Way too happy," said Oliver warmly. He kissed her. "Ridiculously happy." Another kiss. "Insanely happy." Yet another soft kiss.

Felicity couldn't help but smile at Oliver's playful kisses, forgetting her embarrassment and feeling herself falling again. "That's a lot of happy," murmured Felicity teasingly.

"You have no idea," said Oliver throatily before kissing her again, this time more deeply.

Felicity leaned into the kiss, returning it eagerly and she felt Oliver's hands go to her waist as he went to lower her back to the ground again but then there was a hiss above their heads and suddenly they were being dosed in water. They broke apart, both shocked by the hit of cold water. Felicity looked up at the overhead sprinkling system which must have been set off by the smoke from the now defunct fire. She blinked the sprinkler water out of her eyes. "Wow, a sprinkler system in a place that is 95% water." She wrinkled her nose. "Is it just me, or does that feel like a little bit of overkill?"

Oliver shook his head, clearing water from his eyes and pulled a face. "Okay, not part of the plan."

"I guess we should get out of here," said Felicity reluctantly. She really didn't want to leave this magical cocoon Oliver had created for them, even if they were now being rained on.

Oliver pursed his lips. "Well, I'm already soaked and so are you."

"Very," agreed Felicity as she looked down at her dress which was now a darker shade of green and very glad she hadn't gone with that white dress she'd initially considered.

He gave a half-shrug. "So, there doesn't seem much point in leaving."

Felicity tilted her head. "There doesn't?"

"We have about five minutes until the Fire Department gets here." Oliver gave her a pointed look. "Let's not waste them," he said huskily, leaning over to her and capturing her lips in the sweetest of kisses.

Unbidden Felicity put a hand to his cheek, returning his kisses, even as the sprinkler water rained on down from above them. Kissing Oliver Queen in the rain, albeit it inside rain, was just as amazing as Felicity knew it would be. She lost herself in his kisses, completely oblivious to their soaking clothes, ruined hair and wet concrete they were sitting on. There was only Oliver and Felicity knew in her heart of hearts, no matter what happened over these coming twenty dates or three weeks, there would only ever be Oliver for her. She surrendered herself to her fate, no more fight in her to deny the inevitable. Felicity was being kissed by the man she was in love with and that was all that mattered and it was all that mattered when five minutes later they were joined by burly firemen resplendent in respirators and flame retardant uniforms. She barely even registered their presence as Oliver didn't seem inclined to stop kissing her anytime soon and that was perfectly fine by Felicity.

In the history of all birthdays which have ever been…

Best. Birthday. Ever.

**A/N****: And there you have it, my version of an Olicity date. :D See, you all kinda knew what the gift Oliver got Felicity was, it was in the back of your head because she'd already told Oliver and you about it. That's why it couldn't have been a cliffhanger, technically you all already knew. Lol And I couldn't make it completely drama free, of course, because that's just crazy talk! The next two chapters are just really setting us up for the next story really, putting the elements in place. And yes, I've had to go to 51 chapters plus the epilogue – damn it, I never get the number right. That last chapter just got too big tying everything up. **

**Anyways, I think you can see where I'm heading with Olicity – lots of dating, lots of teasing and of course, a few curve balls because Aunty Lou does love her balls… hmm, reading that back makes me seem a little deviant. I mean, I like balls a healthy amount, not a weird, creepy, cut off their chest hair and wear it in a locket around my neck kinda way. Just the regular amount of love you're meant to give to balls, curve or otherwise. But I digress… as usual. We're almost there, peeps, can you believe it? Yeah, me either. See you tomorrow for 50 and once again I don't think it has a cliffhanger but apparently we don't all agree on my version of a CH. lol**

**Toodles. :D **


	50. Chapter 50

**A/N****: Apologies, peeps, for not keeping our date yesterday. My work life is currently at a level of crazy that requires some kind of Defcon threat level attached to it. I'm doing so many things at once that I'm literally at the point of becoming a little hysterical about the amount of work I have to do. I can feel the crazed laughter building up behind my crazy-eyes façade but I know if I let go it's not going to be pretty… or professional. Nobody likes a foaming at the mouth supervisor in a laboratory, it's just a fact. So, I've got a thin veneer of professionalism going on while Harold, my panic gerbil is running faster and faster around on his gerbil wheel (which is a modified hamster wheel), trying to keep up. **

**So yeah, no update yesterday for the above reason plus also when I finally got to eat for the first time yesterday, after getting home from work, I ate WAY too much because I was starving and then spent the next 2 hours willing myself not to vomit. It really cut into my evening. That was probably an overshare on my behalf. You don't have Stephen King telling people he spent 2 hours of his evening trying not to vomit… although, if anyone would, it'd be him, because he's got to be a weird guy, right… with all that Tommy Knockers and It stuff running around in his head. Anyone who can come up with the character of Pennywise is someone you should always keep one eye on and never be naked around. That just feels like a sensible rules to live by kinda thing.**

**Hmm… which got me to thinking, with all this talk of Pennywise and the creepy ass clown in American Horror Story this season – Twisty… holy frickin' hell!... sooo many things not right about that guy and the fact he doesn't speak… ugh, just not right and that's before he starts with the stabbing thing. Okay, where was I, got distracted by evil clowns… oh yeah, Halloween is happening for the US type folks amongst you on Friday. We don't really celebrate Halloween here in Oz although there is a kinda weakfish… whoa, wait, spellcheck has just freaked me out… I went to write weak-ish (which yes, I know isn't a word) but it changed it to weakfish because apparently that IS a word which meant I immediately had to google it and apparently a weakfish is ****a large slender-bodied marine fish living along the east coast of North America, popular as a food fish and for sport. **

**Huh, there you go, did not know that. **

**Although, I don't know if fish can get bummed out (I'd like to think so because it implies that they can also get really happy as well, which I like the thought of happy fish in our oceans and waterways) but how disappointed would you have to be when you find out what scientists have named you… weakfish. You'd be swimming around and then you'd have that moment of realization, wait, they keep saying 'weakfish'… dude, are they talking about us? I can imagine it'd have the same disappointment factor for the common rat when they found out their scientific name was 'ratus ratus'… I mean, scientists could have put just a touch more effort into that one, right? On that note, did you know that the only animal that is called by its scientific name as its common name is a boa constrictor? I guess when you can strangle a water buffalo, you don't like anyone coming up with a nickname for you… and who's going to argue with that? **

**Anyways, not my point, what was my point… oh yeah, evil clowns, Halloween, Aussies do a half-hearted attempt at it but I really like creepy things, so, I was thinking I'd write a short Arrow/Halloween kinda fic with the gang. I thought it'd be a bit of fun and maybe just be a couple of chapters long. Haven't really got a concept yet and it'll obviously miss Halloween but would anyone be interested in reading some kind of Halloween-flavoured fic with the gang? Just thought I'd throw it out there. **

**And now, this actual chapter. Okay, well, it's cutesy, particularly the Olicity stuff which initially worried me that it wasn't being very authentic to the show but then I thought about how Olicity were with one another in the first 20 minutes of the S3 premiere with the fern stuff and Oliver saying he let her buy him a bed etc etc and thought, if Oliver ever gets his head out of his ass on the show, I really do think their dynamic would be fun and flirty like I'm writing. The truth is, I think SA is obviously a much lighter, funnier guy than Oliver (probably a good thing) and he and EBR have a light, easy energy together that is good for bantering… Oliver isn't as good with the banter on the show at the moment because he's all 'weight of the world on my shoulders' but if that was removed, I think he'd actually be a fun, charming guy… Ollie without the sexual promiscuity and lack of responsibility. Lol **

**So yeah, I guess this chapter is my hope for where show Olicity could ultimately end up, with a slightly less dark thematically Arrow show overall. Enough from me, I'm still coming down from a Cheezel high (obviously) and I've done a full day's work but I've got to turn around and go back again tonight to get to all the things I didn't get done during the day and then it's back at work first thing in the morning and I'm working all through the weekend. This time I've got 6 weeks of work with 2 days off in amongst it all. Harold is going to have the legs of an Olympic sprinter at this rate. **

**Anyways, chapter, read, or don't, it's up to you. You might need a cup of tea and lie down if you've just read all of the above. I know I do. . **

**CHAPTER FIFTY**

Felicity bent over the bench, fiddling with the sleeve of the bio-suit. Behind her Oliver was doing some target practice with his bow and arrow. There was a tennis ball tethered from the ceiling, swinging back and forth and Oliver was shooting arrows at it. Felicity heard Oliver release an arrow and she didn't have to turn around to know he'd hit his mark. The next thing she knew, Oliver was coming up behind her.

He leant past her, chest rubbing up against her shoulder and reached for an arrow from his quiver which was on the other side of the bench. "Excuse me," Oliver murmured in her ear.

Felicity looked over her shoulder at him as he smiled down at her and she smiled back. Then Oliver was heading back to his target practice. Felicity gave a little shake of her head to clear it from the nervous flutter her whole body gave from Oliver being that close. She was still pinching herself that last night had actually happened. It had been perfect, even the being doused by fire sprinklers. They were really going to do this and Felicity could barely contain her excitement although she tried to play it cool around Oliver. Which would be easier if he wasn't looking particularly sexy today. She kept looking over at him to find him already looking at her and smiling. Felicity would look away quickly but was unable to hide her pleased smile before she did. There was another sound of the tennis ball being impaled and then Oliver was back, rubbing against her as he reached for another arrow.

"Pardon me," he said huskily.

"You know, this isn't a very efficient way to practice your aim," she admonished him teasingly. "You should take the quiver with you."

"Who says practicing my aim is my goal here?" asked Oliver throatily.

Felicity turned her head to look at him quickly and saw the sly smile on his lips. Olive was still standing very close, body leant into hers. Felicity arched an eyebrow, feigning seriousness. "You know, Mr. Queen, what you're doing could be construed as sexual harassment in the workplace."

Oliver pursed his lips. "Is that right?" He looked thoughtful. "Guess I should make it worth all that paperwork then."

Before Felicity could react, Oliver was leaning in and kissing her. She couldn't help but smile into the kiss and felt Oliver do the same. Felicity pulled back a little attempted a look of censure which was completely negated by the smile on her lips. "You're in so much trouble now, mister. You wait until my lawyers get a hold of you."

"Totally worth it," said Oliver in satisfaction. He turned around and leant back against the bench, not taking his eyes off her. "Where do you want to go for our fifth date tonight?"

"We're going on a date tonight?" asked Felicity, pleased and then frowned. "Wait, what, fifth date, how do you get that? It's only our second."

"It's our fifth," said Oliver confidently. He started to list them off on his fingers. "One, Thea's birthday party."

"That doesn't count," protested Felicity.

"You said it was date-adjacent," argued Oliver. "That's got the word date in it, so, it was a date."

"It doesn't count because you were definitely still under the influence of the XR-320 then," said Felicity in exasperation.

Oliver pulled a face. "Okay, fine, two… I bought you coffee in the file room on the first day you got back from Vegas."

"In what way was that a date?" laughed Felicity.

"I spent money on coffees," he reasoned. "We were alone. It had a date vibe to it."

"Spending money isn't the only prerequisite to it being a date and FYI, you're making me sound like a hooker again… one you can buy for a cup of coffee." Felicity wasn't actually mad but she was enjoying their little game too much to let Oliver get away with anything.

"It was a date," argued Oliver stubbornly.

"Alright, I'll call it a half date, but that's only because it involved the first coffee I had in months."

Oliver grinned. "I'll take it. Then there was the date at the French restaurant—"

Felicity looked at him in disbelief. "Are you being serious right now?"

"You were on a date," said Oliver innocently. "I was there. It was a date."

"I was on a date with _another_ _man_," she exclaimed. "That in no way counts as a date between us."

He grimaced. "Okay, I thought that one might be a bit of a reach," he conceded.

"And then some," said Felicity in exasperation.

"I did end up back at your place afterwards though," he pointed out.

Felicity rolled her eyes. "Uninvited."

Oliver made a clucking sound of disapproval. "Felicity, this is never going to work if you insist on remembering every minor detail of our time together."

Felicity shook her head at him, unable to help her smile as Oliver valiantly tried to make up their dating quota. It was kind of adorable him being this desperate to make it to twenty dates and to be honest, if it wasn't so much fun arguing with him, Felicity would probably let him get away with it.

"I feel like that should still be counted towards at least a partial date," he insisted. "Another half maybe?"

"You were very rude to Tim, ruined my evening before I got to eat anything and then got me out of bed at three in the morning." Felicity folded her arms in front of herself. "You're not getting a half." She tilted her head and gave it serious consideration. "You can have one quarter."

"Done," said Oliver without hesitation. He smiled at her, warm gaze holding hers. "And then there was last night."

Felicity bit her bottom lip.

"That was definitely a date," he said huskily.

She gave a shy smile. "Yes, it was."

"So, what does that make, three dates in total?"

"Nice try, buddy, but I believe the total is one and three quarters."

Oliver just smiled and leant into her again. "So, what does a guy have to do to make up that quarter quota to make it an even two?"

Felicity's lips twitched. "Just out of interest, does all this attentiveness and willingness to do my bidding go away once the quota is met?"

Oliver's expression became more serious. "No, it doesn't," he said huskily. "I'm pretty much under your spell, Felicity Smoak and I can only see that getting a whole lot worse once we make love."

Felicity drew in an unsteady breath, unable to stop herself conjuring up the mental image of Oliver making love to her. She felt her cheeks heat at the thought of it.

"Don't," complained Oliver with a groan as he watched the pink color her cheeks, "you know what that does to me."

"It's your own fault," said Felicity unevenly. "You're way too sexy for your own good."

"That's pretty much my complaint about you too," said Oliver with another groan.

Felicity couldn't help but giggle. "Don't know what we can do about that. It's quite the tricky conundrum."

"You could kiss me maybe?" said Oliver hopefully.

Felicity arched an eyebrow. "And how would that help make things less hard?" she teased him.

"I really don't think things not being hard around you is an option anymore, Felicity," said Oliver, straight-faced.

"Mr. Queen," said Felicity mock outrage, "that was a totally inappropriate comment. You should be ashamed of yourself."

"I'm not," said Oliver unrepentantly, a goofy smile gracing his lips. "Honesty, remember, the keystone of a meaningful relationship."

Felicity tutted. "You're a bad man." Was she really insanely flirting with Oliver like this? And it was so much more fun than even her fertile imagination had conjured up in the past.

"Then you should definitely punish me," said Oliver throatily. "I have a few ideas."

Felicity's eyes were dancing with mischief as she pressed her shoulder up against his as he leant against her desk, their heads turned and facing one another. She leant in, her lips a hair's breath from his. "So do I," Felicity whispered.

Oliver's eyes flared, his breathing becoming more ragged. "You do?" he breathed, voice full of excited expectation.

"I do," she murmured, lips now brushing his as she spoke. "I was thinking you could put those clever hands of yours to good use."

"I could definitely do that," said Oliver eagerly, his gaze not leaving hers as one hand snaking around her waist and then starting to creep lower. "My hands are at your command."

Felicity knew exactly where that wayward hand of Oliver's was heading, fingers already spreading out to encompass as much of her backside as he could. "I was hoping you'd say that," said Felicity huskily. "You know how I like it."

A slow, knowing smile spread across Oliver's lips. "Not completely, but I'm going to enjoy the hell out of finding out for sure."

"Black with three sugars."

Oliver blinked. "What?"

"My coffee," said Felicity innocently. "I like it black with three sugars."

"You want me to make you coffee?" said Oliver slowly.

"To make up the date quota to two," said Felicity, trying not to smile. "That was my idea how to do it, as long as you change the filter on the coffee machine."

Oliver's eyes narrowed with feigned menace. "So, that's how it's going to be, huh?"

"That's how it's going to be," said Felicity smugly.

"You realize this means war," said Oliver, lips twitching.

A war of the two of them trying to drive each other crazy with desire… Felicity was pretty sure this particular battle was going to be one for the ages. "Bring it on, big boy," said Felicity straight-faced.

Oliver leant over, lips against her ear. "You have so bitten off more than you can chew this time, young lady."

Felicity tried not to shudder at the feeling of Oliver's hot breath in her ear. She returned the favor, whispering into his ear now. "You have no idea what I can do with my mouth, Mr. Queen." Her voice lowered until it was little more than a purr. "_No_ idea." She saw Oliver involuntarily swallow hard and knew that comment had hit its mark. With that, Felicity abruptly moved away and smiled at him sweetly. "You know what's wrong with this picture?"

Oliver still looked a little frazzled. "We both just egged ourselves on to make a bet between us that will probably shorten my life expectancy?" suggested Oliver unevenly.

Felicity tried not to smile at that honest confession. She held out her hands and turned them over and back. "No coffee." Felicity cocked her head. "I wonder what can be done about that?"

"Don't worry," said Oliver, straightening up and pushing himself away from the bench, "you'll get your coffee." He went to walk past her and as he did, Oliver's hand snuck out and gave her backside a cheeky pinch. "And your comeuppance."

Felicity gave a little squeal at the pinch and tried to glare at Oliver's retreating back but couldn't quite manage it. "Less pinching, more coffee making," she ordered him, trying not to laugh.

"I can do both, I'm clever like that," said Oliver cheekily, as he stopped by the coffee machine and started to change the filter.

The sound of the door at the top of the stairs opening broke into their unabashed flirting and Felicity looked up to see Diggle making his way down the stairs. "Hi, John," she beamed.

"And a good morning to you too," said Diggle. He half-smiled as he got to the bottom of the stairs. "Someone looks pleased with herself today."

"That's because she's evil," called out Oliver as he fiddled with changing the filter on the coffee machine, clearly not knowing exactly what he was doing. "All maniacal torturers are self-satisfied by nature."

Felicity stifled a laugh at Oliver's playful jab.

Diggle arched an eyebrow. "Why do I feel like I've walked in halfway through something that would have made sense of that last statement?"

"Ignore, Oliver," said Felicity in amusement. "He's pouting because I bested him."

"Day ain't over, sweetheart," said Oliver, casting her a look of mocking menace.

"You're making coffee _and_ changing the filter," noted Diggle. "Wrongly, I might add."

"What?" asked Oliver, stopping what he was doing. "What am I doing wrong?"

"It goes the other way," said Diggle. "You're doing it backwards."

"No, I'm not," said Oliver but then surreptitiously followed the other man's directions.

"So, I'm assuming I've slipped into some kind of alternate universe seeing as Oliver's making coffee," said Diggle.

"I make coffee," protested Oliver.

"No, you don't," said Felicity and Diggle as one.

"Yes, I do," said Oliver, finally getting the machine set up and percolating away. He turned to face them. "On occasion."

"This being one of those occasions?" said Diggle dryly.

"Obviously."

He looked between them. "I'm going to go ahead and assume the date went well."

Felicity and Oliver shared a big smile with one another.

"Yes," said Felicity happily. "It went well. Even if emergency services made an appearance at the end."

Diggle looked between them expectantly.

"The Fire Department," explained Oliver. "There was a little fire."

"How do you have a fire in an aquarium?" asked a mystified Diggle.

"You knew?" said Felicity in surprise.

"I knew. Wasn't convinced it was exactly first date material but Oliver was set on it."

"It was perfect," sighed Felicity.

Diggle smiled. "I'm glad."

"How did your night with Roy go?" asked Oliver.

Diggle hesitated. "Fine."

Oliver walked over to him. "And by fine you mean—?"

"I mean fine," said Diggle calmly. "It was fine." He avoided eye contact. "Couldn't have been finer."

#

"Hello, Albert," said Bunny calmly, eyes sliding up and down him, a look of vague disdain on his face at the once again white shoes with a black suit. "Resplendent as always I see."

The man with slicked back dark brown hair gave a grunt. "What do you want, Forbes-Hamilton? I'm in the middle of a hot run here." Ross had a wad of money in one hand and betting stubs in the other.

Diggle stood with Roy just behind Bunny, taking in the throng of men around them who seemed to be from all walks of life and not all of them from the wrong side of the tracks. Diggle recognized corporate bankers, lawyers and politicians amongst the less upwardly mobile masses. His mouth tightened ever so slightly, not in love with that scenario. Driving Oliver around meant that he'd come in contact with some of these men in the past and even though he was just a bodyguard/driver to them and someone they mostly ignored, Diggle also knew he was a fairly distinctive man, due to his size. All he needed was one of the men here to recognize him and raise the alarm and this could all go south very quickly. He silently willed Bunny to hurry up with luring Ross out of there.

"And far be it from me to remove anyone from hot cocks," said Bunny straight-faced, "but I do believe there is a spot of business you might be interested in pursuing with me."

Ross scowled. "What kind of business?"

"The last time you spoke, you showed an enthusiastic interest in my missile," said Bunny calmly. "I think we know which one I'm talking about."

Ross' eyes narrowed. "You didn't want to sell me that before. What gives?"

"A change of heart," said Bunny blithely. "It's not unheard of. We should discuss price."

"What, now?" Ross looked over his shoulder at the ring of men shouting and calling out over the pit where two roosters were already pitted against each other. "I got money on the next fight. Big money."

Bunny waved a hand at him. "It won't take a moment, particularly if you don't haggle over the price."

"I'm not paying more than a quarter of a mill for it," said Ross determinedly.

"We should talk outside. It's too noisy in here."

Ross' eyes drifted over to Roy and Diggle. "Okay, just the two of us."

"Where Mr. Forbes-Hamilton goes, we go," said Diggle coolly. "It's non-negotiable."

Bunny smiled brightly. "Isn't he lovely? And so serious about his job. I don't think I even get a say in the matter."

Ross pulled a face. "Your hired help is telling you what to do now?"

"I'm putty in Mr. Grey's large, capable hands," said Bunny, throwing Diggle a cheeky look and then looked over at Roy. "And Mr. Pink's for that matter."

"Damn it," muttered Roy under his breath at Bunny going with his original choice for Roy's cover name.

Diggle saw a man coming up behind Ross and made it a point to show no emotion even though he recognized the man as one of the executives at Queen Consolidated. The man put a hand on Ross' shoulder. "The big fight is up next. You coming or what?"

"I'm just finishing up some business," said Ross.

The newcomer's gaze wandered over to Diggle and he frowned a little. "Hey, don't I know you?"

Diggle didn't comment, just returned his gaze unblinkingly.

The man clicked his fingers together. "You're Oliver Queen's guy, his driver."

Diggle felt Roy tense beside him.

Ross was giving Diggle a wary look now. "What is going on here?"

"Nothing," said Bunny swiftly. "Mr. Grey does a little freelance work, that's all."

"That's not his name," said the other man. "It's Wiggle… or Giggle… something that sounds made up."

Ross shook his head. "I don't like this. Something is hinky." He backed up. "Forget about our business, Forbes-Hamilton. I'm not interested."

Diggle's jaw hardened as the other man went to leave. "Time for Plan B," he murmured under his breath to Roy.

"We have a Plan B?" Roy whispered back.

"Yeah, get Ross out and don't get dead."

"I feel like Plan B should be more fleshed out," complained Roy but Diggle was already moving in to grab Ross before the man got any further around.

And then the chaos erupted…

**A/N****: Not really cliffhanger because you know that Diggle makes it out okay… although I guess you don't know what happens to Roy… or Bunny for that matter. We'll call it a half cliffhanger… a hill-lean… that sounds like it's a thing, right? Yep, that's what I thought. :D **


	51. Chapter 51

**A/N****: This is technically the last chapter (even though there is an epilogue to come, of course) so I feel like I should say something profound and meaningful see as we took this long journey together. Let's see… umm… well I… hmm… did you know… no, ahh… tortoises can breathe through their butts and butterflies can taste through their feet… yeah, sorry, that's all I've got. Doesn't exactly relate to the story so far but it could be handy during the next pause in conversation you might have. Butt stuff is always a conversation starter… or is that finisher… I always get those two mixed up. **

**Anyways, in this chapter, we'll find out how the Briggle adventure ultimately goes down and well, some more talking, I guess. One of my reviewers mentioned that they've just realized Olicity sex is off the table in this fic… and yes, you're right, it is. Lol This fic was getting Olicity to admit their feelings and start dating, the next story is about them going to the next step, so things will definitely heat up in that regard. ;) **

**And now, I guess the chapter… have at it, my ducklings… :D **

**CHAPTER FIFTY ONE**

Oliver was looking at Diggle intently. "And is fine all I'm going to get?"

"Pretty much," said Diggle calmly.

"So, Ross is taken care of?"

"Yes."

"Okay," said Oliver easily. He trusted Diggle and if the man said everything was dealt with, then everything was dealt with.

"Felicity!"

Oliver and Diggle turned their heads and looked up to see Roy at the top of the stairs looking flushed and flustered.

Felicity appeared from the back room where she'd gone to retrieve some fabric for the suit and looked up at him too. "Yes?"

"Oh good, you're here," said Roy in obvious relief. He practically ran down the stairs. "I could barely sleep at all last night." Roy was pulling his shirt out from his pants and then he was tearing his shirt off over his head and making a beeline for her. "Felicity, I need you—"

Oliver stiffened and immediately put himself between Felicity and the now shirtless Roy who only had eyes for Felicity all of a sudden. "What the hell, Roy?" said Oliver sharply. "Back off."

"I need Felicity to check me over," said Roy urgently, his hands going to his belt buckle.

"What for, your sanity?" asked Diggle wryly. "Because I think you left it at the top of the stairs right before you started your little strip tease for Felicity."

"I'm not doing a strip tease," said Roy in agitation. "I'm just taking my clothes off. Felicity doesn't care. She's seen it all before."

Oliver fairly bristled to hear that.

Felicity was quickly putting a hand on Oliver's arm, stepping out from behind where he was essentially guarding her from Roy. "I haven't seen it all before. Just bits… and a couple of pieces," she said hastily.

"Which pieces?" growled Oliver jealously. He didn't want to be so territorial when it came to Felicity but he couldn't help. Never had been able to if he was honest with himself.

"Just the pieces which go into the suit," said Felicity, looking a little flustered.

"It's a full body suit, that's _all_ of the pieces," said Oliver tightly. He jabbed a finger at Roy who was in the middle of pushing his jeans down. "The pants stay on if you want to ever eat solid food again," he bit out.

"I need Felicity to check all of me," said Roy in exasperation.

"What am I checking for exactly?" asked Felicity in confusion.

"I think I've been bugged," said Roy unhappily.

Diggle sighed heavily. "He was just messing with you. There isn't a bug implanted in you."

Oliver looked between the other two men. "Who's he?"

"Bunny," said Roy distractedly. "He said he put some kind of sub-epidermal tracking device in me."

Oliver frowned. "When did you see Bunny?"

"Last night," said Roy in agitation. He glanced at Diggle. "Didn't you tell them what happened?"

"I didn't go into a lot of detail," said Diggle calmly.

"You said fine," said Oliver flatly. "It could be argued that you didn't go into any detail at all."

"That's because it was all fine," said Diggle casually, "… in the end."

"And in the middle?" pushed Oliver.

"It kinda sucked donkey balls," said Roy candidly.

#

"Bunny, move!"

"I am moving, kitten!" gasped the older man as they both bounded up the stairs. "I've already done my cardio for today. I don't need anymore."

"You don't need a bullet in the back of your head either," bit out Roy as he ushered Bunny up the internal stairs of the office supply building. "So keep going!"

After Diggle had been recognized everything had pretty much gone south after that. Suddenly there was a tunnel full of men all trying to clear out at once, not knowing what was going on but none of them wanting to be left around to explain when it was all said and done. And then there were Ross' bodyguards who leapt into the fray, which left them in the middle of a sea of escaping bodies and being hunted down. Roy had done what Diggle had originally ordered him to do, get Bunny out. Diggle had shouted for him to go and even though Roy had wanted to stay and help, he knew they had a responsibility to Bunny to get him out safely. Bursting out of the tunnels, they'd found themselves in the first floor of the office supply building and with a couple of Ross' men on the front door, the only way out was up and that was what they were currently doing, going up.

"Kitten," panted Bunny as he managed to keep pace with the younger man, "where are we going? How are we going to get off the roof?"

"Don't worry about that," said Roy grimly. They were at the access door to the roof and Roy just kicked it down.

"Ohh," cooed Bunny, "so manly."

Roy grabbed his arm, hearing the heavy footsteps of more of Ross' guards not far away on the staircase below. "Quick, we have to keep moving." Roy held onto Bunny's arm and ran with him across the roof until they were on the far edge.

Bunny peered over the ledge and grimaced at the ground below. "Honey, I don't know what the plan is but jumping from here is not an option."

"We're not exactly jumping." Roy drew out his small crossbow and fired down into the alleyway below. The zip line attached to the bolt shot out at lightning speed as the bolt embedded itself in the brick wall below. "Hold on tight," Roy ordered him, conscious of the fact gun-welding men were about to burst out of the door behind them any minute now. He tensed as Bunny did exactly as Roy had ordered. "Not my ass!" he said sharply. "That isn't going to help you."

"But I've got a good grip on it," said Bunny brightly.

"I know," ground out Roy darkly and slapped his hands away. "Put your arms around my neck."

Bunny immediately complied. "It's like I'm Olivia de Havilland to your Errol Flynn," he said excitedly.

"I don't know who those people are," said Roy flatly and then he was launching them off the roof, Bunny clinging to his neck as they sailed through the air. "The landing is going to be rough," he cautioned Bunny. "Try and roll—" By then they were just above the ground and Roy released the zip line. They dropped the last few feet and Roy tucked and rolled, trying to absorb the impact with the extra weight of Bunny, he was thrown off and they both tumbled into a row of dumpsters, a tangle of arms and legs. Roy's back slammed up against one of the large, industrial size dumpsters, halting any further rolling on his behalf but then Bunny tumbled into his lap, face down into his lap to be precise. Roy shook his head to clear it and then realized Bunny wasn't moving. He put a hand on Bunny's shoulder. "Bunny, are you alright?"

"Am I dead?" mumbled Bunny dazedly. "Because if I am, this is exactly how I wanted to go."

Roy made an exasperated sound. "Get your face out of my balls!" he ordered the other man tartly as he pushed on Bunny's shoulders to get him to move. "You're going to get us shot!"

"Leave me to my fate!" exclaimed Bunny, struggling against being dislodged from Roy's crotch. "This was how I was meant to go!"

"It's not how I was meant to go!" said Roy in horror, finally managing to roll out from underneath Bunny. "On your feet, we have to get out of this alleyway!" He looked up to see the men on the roof having now spotted them and they were taking aim. Roy grabbed Bunny by the scruff of his shirt and dragged him to the feet and away from the hail of bullets which was now raining down on them. They burst out into the street in amongst the crowd of men all fleeing the scene. In amongst all the mayhem, Roy caught sight of Diggle as he was chasing down Ross who was a little way ahead of him and running down the road. Diggle was closing in but then he was waylaid by a surge of bodies all trying to escape at once and Diggle became caught up in the middle of them, trying to fight his way through them to get to Ross. Roy shoved his hand into his jacket, no longer having his crossbow but knowing he could slow Ross' escape. He drew out a smoke bomb and lobbed it a few feet ahead of Ross. The bomb went off, causing Ross to double back around until he caught sight of Roy who was now running up the street towards him. Ross double backed around again as a black limousine pulled up in the street twenty feet in front of him as he ran up the middle of the road. Roy and Diggle were both trying to valiantly fight their way through the people to get to Ross before he got to the waiting getaway car but it was proving a difficult task.

Roy knew Ross was going to get away at this rate so he pulled out another device from his jacket, one Felicity had given him and threw it over the heads of all of the people at Ross. Unfortunately, just as he threw it, Bunny was behind him and grabbed his arm as he stumbled, throwing Roy's aim off. The device ended up hitting the guy who was running just ahead of Ross and deploying the electrical shock it was intended to give. The man crumpled to the ground in the middle of the road, completely unconscious. Ross took the time to turn around and throw Roy a mocking look at his failed attempt to stop him. Just then a large, refrigeration truck turned into the chaos up ahead of them. It swerved to avoid the unconscious man on the road and narrowly missed Ross in the process. Ross sent Roy another triumphant look at avoiding being stopped a second time, this time flipping the frustrated Roy the bird with both hands.

At the same time, the truck driver's quick reflexes weren't enough to save himself because he then plowed his truck into a shop front. The force of the impact flung the back doors of the truck open and rained out the contents of the refrigerated unit, which just happened to be frozen chickens. Albert Ross was immediately buried in hundreds of frozen chickens raining down on him. Roy's eyes went wide at the sight of Ross disappearing under all that frozen poultry and then he was running up to where the other man was completely buried except for one twitching hand which was sticking out from the pile of frozen birds. The twitching stopped and Roy didn't need to check for a pulse to know the other man was dead. "Ah crap," he said in annoyance. Diggle and Bunny were immediately by his side and Roy felt Diggle's hard stare. He held up a hand, immediately protesting his innocence. "Hey, that was _not_ my fault. You saw it, it was an act of God… or chicken… or some kind of vengeful chicken god maybe, I'm not sure."

"You know this officially makes it a spree now, don't you?" asked Diggle flatly.

"It wasn't my fault!" squeaked Roy.

Bunny was shaking his head. "A man whose name sounds like albatross killed by frozen chickens out the front of a cock fight while flipping us the bird." He tutted. "_So_ many levels of irony in that one. I'm not sure where to start."

Roy grimaced, knowing it was going to take him a long time to live this one down.

#

Oliver was just staring at the two men. "I'm sorry, in what way does any of that translate to things going 'fine' last night?"

Diggle shrugged. "Albert Ross has been neutralized. We don't have to worry about him setting up his money laundering business in Starling City anymore."

"And again, why was this Bunny guy with you?" asked Oliver in exasperation.

"He's surprisingly difficult to dislodge once he attaches himself to you," said Diggle. He gave a small grimace. "Surprisingly difficult."

"He was an in to the cock fight where Ross was," explained Roy. "We had to take him along."

"Ugh," said Felicity, pulling a face. "Cock fighting is so horrible." She tilted her head and looked suddenly thoughtful. "So, does cock fighting have different weight divisions like human fighting or are they all just bantam weight by default?" The men just looked at her blankly. "Sorry," said Felicity, "was that a dumb question?"

Oliver and Diggle looked at each other and then Oliver replied. "No," he said slowly, "I don't think so, we just don't know." It was a very Felicity question and despite the news about last night and how things had gone far from smoothly, Oliver found himself smiling.

"Okay," said Roy in agitation, "now that we've got that all sorted, can I please be checked out for some kind of tracking device being embedded in me without my permission."

"Come over here," said Felicity. "I'll do a scan for any electronic devices, okay?" She drew him off to one side and started to check Roy over with a handheld scanning device.

Oliver turned his attention back to Diggle. "Should we be worried about this Bunny character?" he said seriously. "I don't like how involved he's getting in our business."

Diggle pursed his lips. "I know what you're saying, Oliver and a part of me agrees but I just don't feel like Bunny is any kind of threat to us. He's pretty benign."

"He's an arms dealer who sells to some of the most violent regimes in the world," said Oliver darkly.

"So do most arms dealers, directly or indirectly," pointed out Diggle. "Hell, American was arming Taliban terrorists inadvertently at one point."

Oliver grimaced at the thought. "I know but—"

"And it's not like we're not used to dealing in shades of grey," said Diggle philosophically. "Bunny doesn't even live in Starling City full time. He just visits on occasion. I don't see him being a threat to us and you know I'd be all over it if I thought he was."

"I suppose," said Oliver, still feeling a little uneasy about this mysterious Bunny.

"I can go deeper," said Roy from behind them. "Do you want me to go deeper?"

Oliver turned around to see Roy with the scanning wand, pressing it against his arm as Felicity looked at the monitor.

"Won't it hurt?" asked Felicity in concern. "I don't want it to hurt."

"Don't care, I just want to be satisfied after we're done. I don't care if it takes all day and night."

Oliver's lips twisted in mild ire at the unintentionally sexually laden way they were talking to one another. "You're hearing this too, right?" he said to Diggle as the other two were absorbed in what they were doing. "It's not just me."

"This is going to take forever, can't you go faster?" Felicity urged him.

"I am going faster."

"No, you're going deeper, it's not the same thing. You need to do both at the same time otherwise we'll never get there."

"Yeah, it's weird alright," agreed Diggle, screwing up his face.

"Thank you," said Oliver in exasperation. "It's not just me being the crazy jealous boyfriend."

"Try rubbing it back and forth more," said Felicity as she looked the read out screen in front of her. "You know, rolling it around. I think that's better."

Oliver shook his head at the way they were continuing to talk to one another in complete oblivion to how it might sound to other people.

"Boyfriend?" noted Diggle with interest. "So, I guess the date really did go well then."

Despite himself Oliver smiled. "It was the best night of my life, John. Felicity and I are going to take it slow for a bit—"

_You have no idea what I can do with my mouth, Mr. Queen. No idea. _

Oliver did his best to stop an involuntary shudder at the sultry promise in Felicity's words. Going slow was going to be a delicious torture and Oliver couldn't wait, knowing each of them was going to try and break the other's willpower on the subject. Oliver felt like there was going to be no losers in that particular battle of wills. Another involuntary smile crept onto his face.

"That should be interesting," said Diggle dryly, "based on your past interpretations of the word slow."

"I love her, Digg," said Oliver softly just as Felicity glanced up and smiled over at him before giving her attention back to Roy. Oliver felt his heart skip a little beat at her simply smiling at him. "It's an amazing feeling, one I can't get enough of. I didn't know it could be like this."

"Felicity seems happy too," noted Diggle.

"And I'm going to keep making her happy," Oliver vowed determinedly. "She deserves nothing less."

Diggle laid a hand on Oliver's shoulder. "I'm happy for you both, I really am, Oliver. I want this to work out for both of you."

"It will," said Oliver calmly. It felt odd to be this confident about something but that was how it was with Felicity. She made him feel like anything was possible and for the first time in his entire life, Oliver didn't have any fear about what those possibilities might be.

"No wait," said Felicity urgently, "it's not meant to go there!"

Oliver wrinkled his nose.

"It'll be fine, I've just got to push a little harder."

Oliver sighed heavily and exchanged a resigned look with a vaguely amused Diggle. These two together were not a good idea for his mental wellbeing. They were going to have to work on this.

"Honestly, Roy, this is ridiculous. Just how up close and personal did you get with this Bunny guy anyway?" asked Felicity in exasperation.

"I don't know," said Roy in agitation. "The guy has quick hands. They're everywhere at once. I've still got his handprint on my ass and his face print in my—" He stopped abruptly when he saw the way everyone was now looking at him with great interest. "Not my ass," Roy finished off lamely. "You don't know," he said hotly. "Bunny's hard to rein in when he gets all frisky. Diggle, tell them."

"All I know is that I don't have Bunny's face print in not my ass," said Diggle straight-faced.

Felicity laughed and Oliver couldn't help but join in.

"You all suck," said Roy sulkily. "How about less laughter and more probing?"

"Now you're starting to sound like Bunny," said Diggle, lips twitching.

"I think I really want to meet Bunny," said Felicity in amusement. "He sounds like a lot of fun."

"One arms dealer in your life is enough," said Oliver quickly. "You don't need another."

"But Eugene is so sweet," she protested.

"So you keep saying but I don't have to like it," said Oliver determinedly. He wanted Felicity safe and not mixing with the bad guys. "There is no reason for anyone else to meet this Bunny person. Team Arrow's association with him is done."

"That sounds like famous last words to me," said Felicity with a half-smile.

Oliver walked up to her. "Please, humor me about this will you? No more gunrunners in your life." He kissed her cheek lightly. "Consider it an early Christmas gift to me."

"You remember I'm Jewish, right?" said Felicity.

"My Hanukkah gift then," said Oliver, continuing on to finish making the coffee.

"You remember you're _not_ Jewish, right?" countered Felicity in vague amusement.

Roy was looking between them. "So, this is happening, huh?" He sighed. "Okay then."

"Why the sigh?" asked Felicity in surprise.

"I just don't want things to get weird around here," said Roy.

"Said the man with a scanning wand pressed into his crotch," said Diggle dryly.

"You're focusing on that area a lot," noted Felicity. "I'm actually becoming concerned about you and Bunny. Is there something you want to tell us, Roy? How much access has Bunny had to that area anyways?"

"More than I'm comfortable with," said Roy flatly.

"Well, you look all clear to me, no bugs," said Felicity. "And it's not going to get weird now that Oliver and I are trial dating."

"What's trail dating?" asked Roy, pulling his shirt back on.

"It's the thing you do before you date for real."

Roy hesitated with buttoning up his shirt. "Is that a thing?"

"Apparently," said Oliver, adding sugar to Felicity's coffee.

"See," said Roy in exasperation, "it's already weird."

Oliver walked over to Felicity and smiled at her as he handed her the coffee. "It's not weird, it's kinda wonderful."

Roy gave an overly dramatic shudder. "Blah, he's doing that optimism thing again, make him stop. It's creeping me out."

"I like it," said Felicity smiling up at Oliver.

Oliver was caught in her gaze as his smile widened. "Yeah, I like it too," he said huskily.

Suddenly the future wasn't this dark, ominous thing to only survive to fight another day. It was full of light and hope and possibilities and for the first time in a very long time, Oliver couldn't wait to see what tomorrow would bring…

"You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope."  
~Thomas Merton~

**A/N****: And now we only have the epilogue to go to lead us into the next story… hope to see you there. :D **


	52. Epilogue

**A/N****: And finally, the last, last chapter of this story! And they said it'd never happen. Ha! Shows what they know, right? **

**Thank you to each and every one of you for hanging in there with me, no matter how frustrating this story got. I hope in hindsight it was worth all the hair pulling… and if not, here is a complimentary beanie to hide the bald patches. :D Much love and appreciation to you all. *huggles!* **

**Hank would also like to say thank and sorry about what he did in your bedroom cupboard. You don't know what I'm talking about… wait a few more days, the smell will explain everything. Sorry about that – it's hard to keep track of him 24/7 and those Ritalin drugs only work for so long… particularly as Hank insists on taking them as a suppository, which I don't think is how you're meant to take them but I try and keep away from Hank's butt as much as possible. Whatever he does with that thing is his business. . **

**Anyways, this last chapter is hot off the press. I literally just finished typing the last couple of pages. I had a real problem ending this scene (as you will no doubt notice when you start writing) but oh well, you get that on big jobs, I guess. **

**And I'm almost certain I'm going to do my Halloween story now. Hank has a few ideas… mostly about an evil monkey paw but it's sounding like it may have semi-autobiographical overtones to it, so I'm not sure if committing that to paper is such a good idea, just in case there are more court cases pending then I'm aware of. I'm thinking at this point I'll call it 'HALLOWEEN ANTHOLOGY' but don't quote me on it. Perhaps it'd be safer to just follow me if you want to check out my next story. I do like to change my mind with these things. I'm fickle like that. **

**Okay, used up my last bit of chatter getting this chapter done, so I'll leave it there. I know, a little anti-climatic but these things often are, it's the nature of the beast. And for one last time, I do hope you enjoy it and hope to see you all soon… muse and Hank willing. :D **

**Have at it, peeps…**

**EPILOGUE**

Oliver leapt down the scaffolding and raced to the far wall, jumping up it as far as he could before falling back down, landing on his feet and bolting to the tractor tire in the middle of the room. He threw the sling attached to the large tire over his shoulder and proceeded to drag it from one end of the Foundry training area to the other. "What do you think about Thai?" he puffed as he dragged the hundred pound tire behind him.

Felicity looked up from where she was working away at the computer. "He's nice, very polite."

"What?" asked Oliver distractedly, blinking sweat out of his eyes.

"Ty Nelson, Porter's new driver."

"No, not Ty the driver, t-h-a-i, the food," said Oliver in amusement. "I thought I'd take you out for Thai tonight, you know, for our sixth date."

Felicity arched an eyebrow at him as he continued his workout, now scaling the brick wall using only pegs which he was hanging onto and driving them into the wall to lever himself up ever higher. "Excuse me, sixth? My count has us at five."

"We had lunch together today," said Oliver, muscles screaming at the intensity of his work out.

"With Diggle," said Felicity wryly.

"Was he there?" asked Oliver innocently, letting himself drop back down the ten feet to the floor.

"Yes, he was there," said Felicity in exasperation. "And you know it. We all had lunch together."

Oliver shrugged as he put the tire sling over his shoulder again. "Okay, so it was a double date. Still counts."

Felicity shook her head at him smiling. "I know Digg is a big guy, but you can't count him as two people. It wasn't a double date. It wasn't any kind of date. We're still on five."

"What if one of our date goes past midnight?" pushed Oliver as he ran, dragging the tire behind him. "That should technically be counted as two dates, because it happened over two days."

Felicity laughed. "You're incorrigible."

Oliver grinned as he dropped the tire and jogged over to the salmon ladder. "So, is that a yes?"

"It's a yes to the Thai and a 'get real' to the two dates in one night thing," said Felicity, smiling up at him.

Oliver hung there on the bottom rung of the ladder, crossing his ankles and gave her his best puppy dog eyes. "I think you're being completely unreasonable about making the math work for us rather than against us on this dating quota thing."

"I think you've still got ten minutes left of your workout," said Felicity sweetly. "And you leave the math to me. We should play to our strengths, right?"

Oliver didn't miss the way Felicity's gaze lingered on his sweat covered, bare chest as she said that.

"We don't want your heart rate to drop, now do we?"

"I don't think that's really something I have to worry about around you," said Oliver, using his vantage point of being above Felicity to enjoy the view afforded him of her lower than usual cut blouse.

Felicity followed his gaze and made a mock sound of outrage and put her hand to her chest. "I thought you were a butt man," she admonished him teasingly.

"I am an equal opportunity ogler when it comes to you," he confessed happily. "I'm pretty much happy to scope any part of your body, any time of the day." Oliver immediately looked completely innocent. "Not that you'd ever do anything like that, of course."

Felicity blushed and bit her bottom lip, smiling. "Of course not," she said with feigned primness. "I'm a lady." Felicity snuck another look at his sweat-covered chest. "Although even a lady needs a hobby."

Oliver grinned. "And I'm more than happy to be your hobby. Consider me available 24/7 for that particular task."

"I'll take it under advisement." Felicity waved a hand at him. "Ten more minutes, remember?"

"And what do I get at the end of that ten minutes?" Oliver started to swing his body, working his way up the ladder with the bar.

"The glow of a job well done," said Felicity teasingly, going back to her computer screen.

"I was thinking of something a little more tangible than that," noted Oliver, working his way up to the very top of the ladder. "How about a kiss… or two?"

"What's in it for me?" asked Felicity cheekily as she went to turn around to look up at him but she knocked her pen off the desk at the same time. "Damn."

She went to retrieve the pen from under the desk which meant Oliver was treated to the sight of Felicity's shapely bottom poking out from underneath the desk. He was immediately distracted and missed the next rung of the ladder. The bar slipped and Oliver fell down several rungs before he managed to save himself by catching a much lower rung. He dangled there, regaining his equilibrium.

Felicity retreated back out from under the desk with her pen in hand and frowned up at him quizzically. "You okay? Did you just fall?"

"No," he lied automatically and then pulled a face. "Maybe a bit."

"You never slip—" Suddenly it must have dawned on Felicity as to what had happened. She rolled her eyes at him. "Incorrigible."

Oliver just half-smiled. "Any man in their right mind is going to be distracted by the sight of that gorgeously firm—" Oliver tensed, noticing a small movement out of the corner of his eye and he let go of the bar, dropping the rest of the way to the ground . As he hit the ground he rolled in one fluid motion to grab his bow and he had an arrow strung to it as he came to a stop in front of a startled Felicity, shielding her with his body even as he pointed an arrow up at the stairs.

The man standing halfway down the stairs clapped his hands together and beamed down at him. "Oh bravo, darling, that was just poetry in motion. Do it again." He reached into his coat pocket and drew out his cell phone. "Wait, I've got to record it this time." He smiled brightly down at Oliver. "You know, for posterity's sake."

"Who the hell are you?" ground out Oliver tightly, keeping his arrow firmly directed between the other man's eyes and making sure Felicity was blocked from the intruder's view by his body. "And how did you get in here?"

"Oh, I just adore a locked door," said the man blithely as he started down the stairs. "I can't keep away from them. Truly, they're like my catnip."

Oliver scowled, hating the fact that someone had been able to get the jump on him like this and breach their inner sanctum. His hand tightened on his bow, eyes narrowing. "Don't move otherwise it'll be the last thing you do," he growled.

The man put a hand to his chest and looked more thrilled than nervous. "Oh, so masculine and demanding, I'm all atwitter."

Felicity's hand was on his arm. "Oliver," she whispered, "I think it's Algernon Forbes-Hamilton."

"Oh, how rude of me," said Bunny with an easy smile. "Your little poppet is indeed correct but I must insist you call me Bunny." He looked between them. "So, do I have permission to come aboard, Captain?"

"No," said Oliver tightly. _What the hell was this guy doing here and how did he know where here was in the first place? _

Bunny waved a hand at him. "Oh well, I'm here now." He kept walking down the stairs.

Oliver watched him descend in disbelief.

"Put the bow down, Oliver," said Felicity, looking at their guest with obvious interest. "He knows you're not going to shoot him."

"I don't know how when I don't know that," muttered Oliver but he lowered his bow anyway, watching Bunny closely.

"Thank you, poppet," said Bunny coming to a stop in front of her. He looked her up and down. "I love this whole look you've got going on, sweetie – the shoes," he waggled a finger at her high heels, "love them, that outfit, to die for and the ponytail with the glasses—" Bunny grinned, "all just too perfect for words."

"Ah, thanks, I guess," said Felicity with a smile.

"And you, my prickly little monkey," said Bunny, turning his attention to Oliver, looking him over, taking in the fact Oliver was only wearing his trousers and no shirt. "You're not big on the clothing front so I'm going to have to reserve judgment but I think we can all agree that covering up all this hard-bodied bounty would be the real fashion crime." Bunny reached out and laid a hand on one of Oliver's pectorals. "Oh," he said in delight, "sweaty. I do love a man who knows how to work up a good lather."

Out of the corner of his eye Oliver could see Felicity putting a hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh.

"How did you get in here?" ground out Oliver.

Bunny raised his free hand to reveal a small silver device. "I call it my little universal key. Very handy."

Felicity looked at it with interest. "That's awesome." She looked at him. "Where can I get one?"

Oliver looked over at her, arching an eyebrow at Felicity engaging with the intruder. Didn't she realize that the guy now knew far more about their lives than any of them should be comfortable with?

"What?" said Felicity catching his look. "It is awesome and it'd be very handy to have."

"It's yours, poppet," said Bunny, handing it over to her. "I have more. It's a prototype my company is working on, it'll open any electronic door."

Felicity turned it over in her hand, examining it with interest.

Oliver could see he'd lost her with the enticement of new tech so he reverted his attention back to Bunny. His lips tightened as he glowered down at the other man, looking as ominous as possible. "Are you going to remove your hand sometime today?" he bit out darkly. Bunny's hand was still resting on Oliver's chest.

"Oh, of course, monkey," said Bunny brightly and promptly moved his hand to Oliver's chiseled abs. "Ohh, even more sweaty," he said approvingly.

Felicity's hand was at her mouth again and this time she was turning away to avoid laughing out loud. Oliver sent her an exasperated look for being no help whatsoever in dealing with this strange, uninvited guest.

"Ohh… I like the energy going on here," noted Bunny, waggling a finger from his free hand back and forth between them. "It makes me all tingly – good things happen when I tingle."

"I don't even know what that means," said Oliver shortly, physically removing Bunny's hand from his stomach himself when it became obvious the other man had no intention of removing it himself. "And Felicity and I are none of your business."

"Felicity?" repeated Bunny happily. "How appropriate."

"Why is it appropriate?" asked Felicity curiously.

"Stop engaging him," said Oliver in exasperation.

Felicity shrugged. "Well, he's here now, you can slam as many barn doors shut as you like but this pony has definitely bolted," she pointed out practically.

"And she lives up to her name once again," said Bunny brightly.

Oliver couldn't help himself. "What are you talking about?"

"Felicity, it means intense happiness, as in the little scene of domestic felicity I walked in on where you were all flirty flirty with one another," said Bunny. "By the way, adorable."

"We weren't flirting," said Oliver sharply, not wanting this stranger privy to their private business.

"I was," said Felicity candidly.

"Felicity!"

"Well, I was."

Bunny patted her arm. "And a fine job you were doing of it too, poppet, judging by the way our little monkey was having trouble keeping his mind on that ladder thingy of his." He nodded his head approvingly. "And again, your felicityness appears to be on show with that bout of honesty – a second meaning to the word, the ability to find appropriate expression for your thoughts."

"I've never heard that before," said Felicity in amazement. "About felicity being a word other than a name."

"Oh yes," said Bunny blithely. "For example, even after just a few minutes talking to you I can see you're one to expose the truth of matters with eloquence and felicity."

Felicity laughed. "Does talking a lot count for eloquence? Because if that's the case, I've pretty much got it nailed. I don't have much of a filter between what I think and what I say."

"Me either," said Bunny in delight, taking her arm. "We're going to be glorious friends, I can just tell."

"No, no you're not," said Oliver in agitation as he untangled Bunny's arm from Felicity's.

"Ohh, he's a jealous one, isn't he?" noted Bunny. "Don't worry, my love, we can share her. I suspect we're both not interested in the same bits anyways."

Oliver drew Felicity to his side and glared at the other man. "I'm interested in all her bits," he said hotly. "There are no bits left over for you." Oliver turned his head to see Felicity arch a pointed eyebrow at him. "Too much?" he backtracked a little.

"Only the part where you all but peed on me to mark your territory," said Felicity wryly.

"That isn't what I was doing," said Oliver quickly.

"I'm having flashbacks to XR-320 Oliver," she warned him.

"You're the accidental gassing survivor, of course you are, it makes perfect sense," said Bunny in delight. "How absolutely wonderful to know I had something to do with preserving all this—" he waved his hands up and down Oliver's body, "—for us to all enjoy." Bunny gave a large smile. "I feel like the little man who stops the erosion on the Statue of David's man bits."

Oliver shook his head in frustration as Bunny had now worked out his association with the toxic gas. He drew Felicity to one side, away from easy earshot of Bunny and tried to make his point. "Felicity," said Oliver doggedly, keeping his voice low, "we don't know this man. He walks in here unannounced, jeopardizing our entire operation and now he knows way too much about either of us for me to be comfortable with. You know how seriously I take vetoing people into the inner sanctum. It's not a do-drop-in ranch, a lot is at stake."

"I know that," whispered back Felicity, "but like I said, it is what it is. Bunny is here now and we just have to deal."

Oliver grimaced, knowing Felicity was right but not liking this situation one little bit. He glanced over at Bunny, only to find the other man had become engrossed in Felicity's bio-suit. "Don't touch that," said Oliver sharply.

Bunny wrinkled his nose. "He's not one to share his things, now is he, poppet?"

"Oliver can just be a little overprotective," said Felicity hastily. "About a lot of things."

"You used my name," said Oliver in defeat.

"You used mine," she countered.

Oliver closed his eyes and pulled a face. "This is a nightmare."

"Oh honey, please, like I didn't know who you were the first moment I laid eyes on that gorgeous face of yours," said Bunny dismissively. "You were screwed on the whole 'mystery identity' thing the moment I walked in the door—"

"Uninvited," ground out Oliver, still annoyed at himself for letting that happened.

"Piffle, if I waited to be invited everywhere I went I wouldn't have met the Queen."

"The Queen?" asked Felicity, looking impressed. "You mean, _the_ the Queen."

Bunny inclined his head. "_The_ the Queen," he confirmed.

"What's she like?" asked Felicity curiously.

"A lot shorter than you'd think," said Bunny thoughtfully. "Knows how to throw a great party. Her hubby's a real card. He's not big on the filter when he speaks either. You've got to respect that in a person."

"Cool," said Felicity, clearly impressed.

Bunny smiled brightly. "So, you see, having already met the Queen, a Queen is no big deal." He paused. "And believe me, I've met a fair few of them in my day, monkey."

"Stop calling me monkey," ground out Oliver.

"Of course, poodle, whatever your little heart desires," said Bunny easily. "Whatever my poodle wants, my poodle gets."

Oliver blinked, not exactly enamored with Bunny's secondary choice of name for him.

Felicity smiled and leaned in towards Bunny. "I think he'd like to rethink the 'no monkey' decree," she said in an overly loud whisper.

"I'd prefer Oliver," he said flatly. "No wait, what am I saying, I'd prefer you didn't call me anything because you were leaving." Oliver's jaw hardened. "Only now that you've seen all this, letting you go isn't really an option."

Bunny clapped his hands together and looked excited. "Oh, please tell me you're going to keep me captive down here and do unspeakable things to me?" he begged Oliver excitedly.

Oliver hesitated and frowned, not really knowing what he was going to do about Bunny.

The older man gave a little squeak of happiness and immediately flung his arms around Oliver's waist and looked up at him adoringly. "Full disclosure before we start this thing," warned Bunny, looking up at him with an excited expression from where he'd laid his head on Oliver's chest, "there is a chance I'm going to get Stockholm Syndrome on your perfectly toned bottom." He wrinkled his nose. "Wait, that isn't true… it's _absolutely_ going to happen. I recommend bracing accordingly."

Oliver screwed up his face in a pained expression, not finding the way Felicity had both of her hands up to her mouth, eyes watering in an attempt to stop herself from laughing out loud, particularly helpful. "Can you take your hands off my ass," he ground out as Bunny had somehow managed to cup his backside in the process of the hug.

"I'll give it a try, poodle," said Bunny, head still on Oliver's chest. There was a second where Bunny tensed his muscles but his hands stayed where they were. "No, sorry, honey, I gave it my best shot but they just seem to have a mind of their own."

"That's it!" said Oliver in frustration, physically pulling Bunny off him as Felicity dissolved into a fit of giggles. "No touching!"

"Ugh, what is it with you hero types and the no touching thing?" said Bunny in exasperation. "Everyone needs a little cuddle now and then, even the Arrow." He gave a light laugh at the way Oliver looked at him for mentioning his alter ego. "Oh, please, sugar pants, like I didn't put two and two together as soon as I saw this set up and got mysterious vigilante do-gooder of Starling City." Bunny laid his hand on Oliver's chest. "Can I just say, huge fan of the green all-leather ensemble… just a huge amount of fan-age there… and I mean _massive_."

Oliver grimaced. This was not good.

"Oh honey, relax," said Bunny dismissively. "I can't be the first person to work out your little secret."

"You kind of are," said Felicity.

"Really?" said Bunny in surprise. "But you must be disappearing all the time and keep showing up with bumps and bruises and well, does no one wonder how you spend your nights?"

"It hasn't come up," said Oliver flatly.

"Seriously?" said Bunny, wrinkling his nose. "Is everyone you know special needs or something? How can it not come up?"

Oliver didn't want to talk about his not so secret identity with this man. "You know I could just kill you," said Oliver tightly.

"Oliver," Felicity admonished him, "you're being rude."

"Our security has been breached, Felicity," he said in exasperation. "How can you not have a problem with that?"

"I don't know, I just don't," she said calmly.

Above them the sound of the door being opened disrupted the conversation Oliver had to admit was going nowhere. Everyone turned and looked up to see Roy and Diggle at the top of the stairs.

"Whoa," said Roy in surprise as he came down the stairs and saw Bunny, "what are you doing here?"

"How about you tell me, Roy?" bit out Oliver.

"I don't know," said Roy in consternation. "Why would I?"

"How did Bunny know about this place?" asked Oliver in annoyance.

"I didn't tell him," protested Roy.

"Hush now, monkey, kitten's right, he didn't tell me."

"Monkey," snorted Roy. "Funny." His smile slipped from his face at Oliver's glare. "Well, it is," he muttered defiantly under his breath.

"How did you know about this place?" asked Diggle, as he and Roy walked over to them.

"You all keep disappearing into this place at odd hours and not coming out forever," said Bunny. "I was thinking some kind of sex dungeon kind of set up, but I have to admit, this is arguably a lot cooler… as long as the sex thing is not completely off the table for down here, of course."

"It's definitely off the table," said Oliver in horror.

"Oh, okay," said Felicity, pursing her lips. "Good to know, I guess."

"No wait, I didn't mean us," said Oliver quickly.

"Mixed messaging, monkey, that won't get you the girl," said Bunny knowingly.

Oliver's jaw hardened as he felt the whole situation continue to be outside his control.

"Uh oh," said Roy, "Mr. Throbby has come out to play. Not good."

"Really?" said Bunny, suddenly breathless as his gaze was immediately firmly fixed on Oliver's crotch.

"It's a vein," Roy tried to correct him.

Bunny's gaze just became more intense and Oliver had to refrain from the urge to cover his crotch. He'd never had another man look at that area is intently before and it was slightly unnerving, not that Oliver would ever admit to that.

"In his temple," clarified Diggle dryly, when it became obvious Bunny was not going to give up his quest for a close encounter with Mr. Throbby.

"Oh," said Bunny, sounding a little disappointed as he finally dragged his gaze from Oliver's crotch to his forehead, "so it is. Oh well, you can't blame a girl for being optimistic when you hear the word throbby."

Oliver caught Felicity trying to choke back more laughter. He put his hand to his temple and the vein which was indeed pulsating there, scowling as a definite pain was starting between his eyebrows.

"Headache, monkey?" asked Bunny sympathetically.

"Yes," said Oliver dourly, "and he won't stop talking."

"You see," said Roy knowingly, "it's harder than you think to rein the guy in, right? It isn't just me."

"Why are you here, Bunny?" said Diggle evenly.

"Oh yes, of course, I got a little turned around," said Bunny brightly. "I see a heaving, rippling piece of gorgeous manhood and I completely forget myself." He looked at Felicity. "Sweetie, how do you ever get any work done in this place with all of this pulsating maleness going on around you?"

"It's not easy," admitted Felicity candidly. "Sometimes it takes me a really long time to do the simplest thing because you know, nipples are really distracting."

"Amen to that, my darling," said Bunny knowingly. "But what a fun distraction they are."

"Focus, Bunny," said Diggle firmly. "Why are you here?"

"I'm here for my favor," said Bunny simply. "My wiggle puppy favor."

"Oh my God," snorted Felicity. "Best nickname ever."

"And one that will never be repeated," said Diggle coolly. "By anyone… _ever_."

"I don't know," said Felicity. "I'll try but I honestly can't promise it won't just slip out one day."

"What's the favor?" said Diggle, ignoring Felicity's dire prediction.

"Well, you know how I've essentially been a key lynchpin in your recent endeavors—"

"Excuse me?" said Oliver sharply. "I don't think so."

"Now then, monkey, if it weren't for me, you wouldn't be alive… and you'd still have a dead French woman on your hands to dispose of," tutted Bunny. "And of course, last night I was indispensable."

"I'd call last night a fairly mixed bag," said Diggle wryly. "A man died."

"That wasn't my fault," protested Bunny and then everyone looked at Roy.

"It wasn't mine either," he said hotly. "Ross was killed by chickens, a lot of frozen chickens. I had nothing to do with it."

"You had a little to do with it, kitten," countered Bunny.

"You grabbed my arm just as I went to throw that shock ball," said Roy in annoyance. "Who does that?"

"I was pushed, it wasn't my fault."

"Okay, enough with the finger pointing," said Diggle determinedly. "I'm still waiting to hear what this favor is."

"Apparently my involvement in the little melee last night has gotten back to the wrong people and by that, I mean Albert Ross' half-brother and well, he's one to hold a grudge, as it turns out. The man's has made it known he's coming to kill me because he blames me for Albert's death."

"What's his name?" asked Felicity, hurrying over to her computer to look the man up.

"Ross."

"I mean his first name."

"Ross."

They all looked at Bunny but it was Felicity who asked the question. "Albert Ross' half-brother's name is Ross Ross?"

"I know," said Bunny, "atrocious, isn't it? It's like their parents hated them from the get go."

Felicity tapped away at the keyboard, checking the man out. She wrinkled her nose at what she found. "Okay, not a good guy."

"Not even a little bit," agreed Bunny. He looked up expectantly at Diggle. "So, I need my brown bear to protect me."

"You have a lot of personal protection already," pointed out Diggle. "A _lot_."

"Ross Ross is a big game hunter. That's his idea of fun down time, killing endangered animals. The man is mean and vicious and once he decides to kill something or someone, he won't stop. I don't want my head being mounted over his mantle all because of a mishap with frozen chickens," lamented Bunny. "My men are good but they're not on the same level as you, brown bear. My life is at stake here and I really don't want to take any chances."

"I'm not killing the man for you," said Diggle firmly.

Bunny waved away his concern. "I have counter contract out on Ross already, don't worry about that. I just need you to keep me alive while my man gets to Ross." He gave Diggle an imploring look. "You wouldn't let your little Bunny end up on an endangered species list, now would you?"

Diggle's expression remained impassive as he seemed to mull it over. "Fine, I'll do it."

Bunny's whole face lit up. "Hurrah!"

"Wait," said Oliver quickly, "we need to discuss this first."

"I said I'd owe him a favor if he helped us out with the chemist guy and your antidote," said Diggle pragmatically, "and if this is what Bunny needs, then I'm okay with it."

"I agree," said Roy quickly, "because let's get real, it could have been sooo much worse."

"Oh kitten," said Bunny, patting his face, "I do love the places your mind goes."

"Not intentionally," said Roy unhappily.

"So then," said Bunny brightly, "it's all settled then? I'm going to be the Whitney Houston to your caramel Kevin Costner?" He fluttered his eyes at her. "You know they had a torrid yet ill-fated romance during that movie, right? Let's hope real life imitates art, eh?"

"It won't," said Diggle calmly.

Oliver's jaw hardened. "I don't like this."

Bunny patted his arm. "Don't worry, brown bear says that now but once we're in the middle of a life and death scenario, who knows what might blossom."

"Not that," said Oliver in exasperation. "All this is because of me. If anyone owes the favor, it's me. I should repay it."

"Oliver, I made the deal with Bunny," said Diggle, unfazed. "I'll repay it."

"Boys, boys, there is enough of Bunny to go around," said Bunny in delight. "You don't need to squabble over him."

Diggle gave Oliver a determined look. "I'm doing this. It's done."

"This isn't a good idea," said Oliver flatly. "I don't like it."

"It'll be a couple of days, tops," said Bunny blithely. "It'll be like an extended girl's night out. We'll braid each other's hair and talk about boys."

"Man, I'd give my left nut to see that," smirked Roy which earned him a cool look from Diggle.

"You will, kitten," said Bunny in surprise. "Obviously you'll be looking after me too."

"What?" asked Roy sharply. "Hey, no, I didn't make any kind of deal with you."

"But you two are a package deal," protested Bunny and then gave them both an impish wink. "And what packages you are," he cooed.

"Are you sure you really want Roy helping out, Bunny?" asked Felicity uncertainly. "He's had a run of bad luck lately when it comes to people staying alive around him."

"Death always comes in threes," said Bunny dismissively. "He's made his quota."

"And once again, because no one seems to be listening to me, I didn't kill anyone," said Roy sharply. "The killers to date have so far been a broom, gravity and frozen chickens._ I_ haven't killed anyone."

"My little Roy toy—"

"We agreed you weren't going to call me that," said Roy flatly.

"—is devoted to me and wouldn't let any harm come to me," said Bunny confidently. "This is going to work out splendidly."

Oliver gave up. Somehow this whole thing had spiraled out of control and now Bunny was neck deep in their business and there wasn't a damn thing Oliver could do about it. He felt Felicity slip her arm through his and Oliver looked down to see her smiling up at him. Despite his many, many reservations about this whole situation, Oliver felt himself relax a little at her soothing touch.

"It'll be okay," she said softly. "Don't stress."

Oliver sighed heavily. "Okay," he acquiesced but then gave Bunny a determined look. "But this is a onetime thing. When this Ross guy is taken care of, our association with one another is done. Understand?"

Bunny just smiled knowingly. "As long as you understand that Bunny is like a box of fine chocolates, one nibble is never enough. You always end up coming back for more."

"That won't happen," said Oliver flatly.

Bunny gave a little, unconcerned shrug and another wink. "I guess we'll see about that, my little love monkey."

Roy gave another snicker. "Love monkey… still funny."

"Shut up, kitten," said Oliver dourly.

"This feels like the beginning of something special," said Bunny warmly, smiling at them all. "This is going to be brilliant, I can just tell."

Oliver had a sinking feeling that they didn't exactly share the same definition of brilliant…

**A/N****: And that's a wrap, my ducklings! It's been a long, twisty turn ride but you've made it, through cliffhanger overloads, through misunderstandings and miscommunications, through angst and near death experiences, we leave our band of merry warriors in an (arguably) good place with the beginning of Olicity underway and the promise of more Briggle. I have come up with a name for the sequel to this story and it's 'UNDER MY SKIN'. Please keep an eye out for it to pop up in the coming weeks as we delve into Olicity dating, Riggle keeping Bunny alive, secrets from the past and life and death scenarios galore! Lot's planned, so make sure to pack comfortable shoes, won't you? ;)**

**One last thank you to all my faithful ducklings for hanging in there with me through thick and thin and being so encouraging and generous with my stories. Even I can't find the words to say how much I appreciated it. **

**Okay, Aunty Lou is outta here but hopefully my little Halloween thriller isn't too far away. Remember, if you've got any votes for what you might like to see in a Halloween story for our intrepid gang, then just let me know and I'll run it by the muse and Hank and see what pops up. ;) **

**Hope to see you all there… :D**


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